The Dimensional Traveler Chronicles
by immortal6666
Summary: Post OOTP. The death of Sirius and the knowledge of what the Fate has in store for him has sent Harry into fits of depression. What would the interference of a violet eyed beauty from another dimension mean for our favorite emerald eyed wizard?
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer:**I DO NOT OWN HARRY POTTER, nor do I have any money, so don't bother trying to sue me. I do this for fun, and it is a lot of fun, so on with the story…

* * *

_Thoughts_

" " – Speaking in English

_$ $ – Speaking in Parseltongue_

' ' – _Non verbal spells_

" " – _Speaking in other languages_

* * *

**The Dimensional Traveler Chronicles**

**1: Arrival of The Traveler  
**

She was falling. She could see the green patch increasing in size with decrease in her altitude. If she was not so afraid of dying painfully, she would have marveled at the beautiful sight. She saw the ground approaching her at great speed and closed her eyes awaiting the inevitable. Fortunately or unfortunately, she hit the topmost branch and then rolled over to the lower branch of the next tree and continued rolling until she hit the ground. She bit her tongue to keep from screaming due to the pain in her bum. She silently cursed Grindelwald for thinking that it was a good idea to create an inter dimensional portal and summon demons, Tom for not finishing Grindelwald quickly enough to come and help her shut down the portal, herself for playing with things she could never understand and for other idiots who came in her way even though killing them had been satisfying. She got up using a nearby tree as a support which turned out to be a more strenuous task than she would have preferred due to the injuries she had sustained in the battle. She looked around and realized that she was in some kind of forest. She wondered what kind of demons roam that place and hoped that she was not way over her head. She detected some movement in a clearing some distance away and decided to check it out. She put on a Disillusionment Charm, masked her scent and silenced her boots. She kept going closer until she was near enough to see the cloaked figures. She saw a blond boy who looked to be in his teens kneeling in front of a demon extending his hand; at least she assumed the figure to be a demon as she had never seen a real demon before. It had no hair, nose, lips or any other usual human identifying features but had eerie red eyes glimmering with hatred. The _thing_ touched a wand-like thing on the boy's arm and he started screaming in pain. It stopped after a few minutes and by then the boy was so tired that he had to use his hands to support himself. It held out its hand and the boy crawled to it and kissed it. She felt disgusted with the sight.

_Did the boy have no sense of self worth? Was it just a small group or were all humans enslaved by demons? _

She then saw an unusual sight.

"Nagini"

_What was she doing there alongside the demon? Where is the Tom Riddle of this universe? _

The snake then turned towards her and hissed at her. It was then that she realized that she had spoken out loud, at least loudly enough for Nagini to hear. She cursed her loud mouth for getting her into trouble. Even though she was very friendly with the Nagini she knew, she knew that she could not trust the one that seemed to have sided with the demon. She took off quickly and reached another clearing. She took off all her enchantments and started a complicated wand motion concentrating on what she needed.

She saw the snake arrive slithering in followed by the demonic figure. He was looking around trying to find her. She felt smug knowing that they would never be able to find her unless she reveals herself. It was an indigenous spell created by her mentor. It had started with common questions 'Where do vanished objects go to?' and 'Where do conjured objects come from?'. The end result was a spell which bended the space-time fabric around the caster and encased them in a protective cocoon, at least that was what she was able to glean from Tom. Theory had never been her strong suit. The advantage of the spell was that the usual detection charms would not work on it. She then saw a woman with unkempt black hair wearing torn robes approaching the demonic creature.

"My lord, you seem to be troubled. Is there any problem?", the hag-like woman asked hesitantly as if she was expecting to be punished.

The taller figure ignored the question and surveyed the surroundings in search of the intruder, his glittering ruby eyes promising slow and painful death to the one who gets caught.

"Nagini sensed the presence of an intruder but it seems to me that they have managed to escape. I am leaving to address certain matters that have come up, Bella. I hope, for your sake, that your nephew doesn't end up to be as much of a disappointment as you have become.", he said coldly, the last part was uttered in such a scathing tone that Bellatrix flinched.

He disapparated away by the time she opened her mouth to reply leaving her to wallow in her shame.

She was shocked when she heard her name. She then looked at the woman properly. The moment she moved her head, her face could be seen clearly. The woman looked exactly like how she would have looked had she been two decades older. She considered herself lucky that no one could see her. She would have been mortified if anyone had witnessed her loss of composure. She used her Occlumency skills to push away her shock and uncertainty and started analyzing the situation logically to decide how to use the information she now had to her advantage. Her first priority was to create an identity and place for herself in this reality. She initially considered kidnapping or killing the other Bellatrix and taking her place. It would not have been that difficult as she was distracted and would be vulnerable to a surprise attack. She then decided against it as she knew nothing about the cult her other self was part of. Also, she would have to take Ageing potion or Polyjuice potion at regular intervals which someone might notice. The risks involved with that plan easily outweighed any potential benefits. Revealing herself and negotiating with her other self was another plan she had discarded due to the amount of risk involved. The most important problem she was facing now was that she knew next to nothing about the universe she was in. So, she decided to lay low and learn everything she could before she did anything. She saw Bellatrix leaving and undid the spell after she waited for some time to ensure that it was safe. Her legs gave way beneath her and she fell down causing her to realize how bad an idea it was to cast such a powerful and complex spell at her current physical state. She realized that she needed to get somewhere safe immediately to recover from her injuries. She concentrated on the required location and apparated home. Later, she would realize that in spite of all her attempts to avoid taking risks, the decision she took then was as risky as the ones she had discarded.

* * *

She appeared in front of a huge wooden door with a handle shaped like a snake. She grabbed the handle and felt something prick her thumb. She then saw her Head of the House ring glow for a few seconds and felt the wards of the house being tied to her. If she was not as eager to get a proper rest as she was, she would have grasped the significance of what had just happened. As that was not the case, she accepted it without question. The door clicked open and she entered closing it behind her. She leaned back on the door for a moment to catch her breath. The family house elf suddenly appeared. It seemed quite excited.

"Mistress Bellatrix has returned home at last. Kreacher is very happy.", it then frowned and said, "But you is not Lestrange. You is only Black."

"I will explain everything later, Kreacher. Now, I need some rest. Don't contact or speak to anyone else until I say otherwise or some other emergency comes up. It is an order.", she said.

"Yes Mistress", it replied and disappeared.

She went to her old room and settled down on her bed. Kreacher appeared with many potion vials which she consumed quickly. She then closed her eyes and fell asleep.

* * *

Few days later, she was woken up by the sound of footsteps. They were so light that she would not have heard it had she not been fighting in a war for the last few years. She unsheathed her wand and slowly slipped out of her room. She followed the sound and quickly reached the living room. She saw a dirty man with long, unkempt hair wearing torn rags carrying a bag over his shoulders.

"Hey! Stop! Who are you? What are you doing in my home?", she shouted.

She saw him stiffen when he heard her. He looked back and his face took on an expression of shock and fear. The expression on his face made it clear to her that he was doing something he was not supposed to.

_Accio…_

The cloth bag flew towards her and she caught it. She saw him drawing his wand and cast the first spell on her mind.

"Crucio"

The sight of the intruder writhing in agony made her smile. Cruciatus had always been a favorite of hers. She stopped the curse and summoned his wand which he had dropped on the ground. She scanned him with a Portkey destroyer spell and saw him screaming when the portkeys he was carrying were destroyed burning into his skin at the places it was in contact with.

She jabbed her wand in his throat and said, "I will ask you one again. Who are you and what are you doing in my home?"

"Please don't kill me. I will do anything you ask.", he babbled shaking in fear.

She scrunched her nose in disgust when she smelt the strong stench of alcohol the moment he opened his mouth.

"Kreacher"

The elf appeared.

"Check the thief for any hidden weapons or portkeys.", she ordered.

The elf checked him and took out a wand that was cleverly hidden beneath the rags. His eyes widened when he saw the wand. It was obvious to her that he treasured that wand more than the rest of his possessions.

"Kreacher, lock him in the dungeons. I don't want the filth dirtying my home. I will have a long talk with him and then decide what to do with him.", she said.

"Yes, mistress", Kreacher said excited.

He liked the new mistress. She was nothing like his old master. The filthy thief had been nicking things little by little for the past year and there was nothing he could do to prevent that. It had started with small things like forks but soon enough many utensils had gone missing. He had once caught the thief and handed him over to his old master but he was released without any punishment on old man Dumbles' orders. He then realized that the only thing he could do was to hide the most important heirlooms in his room. He did not know how the thief found his room and managed to steal everything but he was happy to see him get his due. He locked up the thief in the dungeon as per the new mistress' orders. He could see that unlike his old master his new mistress would not let anyone walk all over her. He was eagerly anticipating the punishment she was going to dole out on him.

Bellatrix opened the bag and was astonished by what she found inside. The bag contained numerous priceless heirlooms which had been in the family for many centuries. She felt her fury rise at the audacity of the thief. She summoned Kreacher.

"Kreacher, is it the first time something was stolen from the house?", she asked.

"No, mistress Bellatrix. He has been stealing things for a year. Kreacher tried to stop it but there was nothing he could do.", he replied with his head bowed down in shame.

She was surprised. Black properties were always heavily warded against intruders and Grimmauld Place was the most protected among them. If he had been sneaking in and out for a year, he must be the best in the business. If that was the case, then she should not have been able to catch him that easily.

"How did he manage to get into the house by the way? Didn't the wards stop him?", she asked.

"Master Sirius keyed him into the wards. He was in the old man Dumbles' group. Master Sirius and Dumbles let mudbloods, blood traitors and thieves run around the house whole year. It made Mistress very angry but she could not do anything.", he said.

Now, she was confused. _When did Sirius become the head of the house? Who exactly is Dumbles? Who does he mean by Mistress?_

"Who is this Dumbles person? It is not Albus Dumbledore, is it?", she asked.

"It is, Mistress Bellatrix.", he replied.

"Are you saying that Dumbledore is still alive? Didn't he die dueling Grindelwald?", she asked.

"No, mistress. Grindelwald lost the duel. That is why Dumbles so famous.", he said in a tone implying that she should have already known it.

"Who is this mistress that you were talking about? I never knew Sirius married.", she said.

"Kreacher was talking about mistress Walburga. Master did not marry. Until few years before, master Sirius was in Azkaban.", he replied.

The elf was looking at her as if it was questioning her sanity. Well, even she was questioning her sanity right now. She rubbed her forehead in frustration. She could feel a headache coming.

"Kreacher, it might sound like a stupid question but is Aunt Walburga alive too?", she asked.

"Mistress is not alive but mistress' portrait is there covered by cloth.", he pointed behind her.

She looked behind her and saw something covered by moth-eaten velvet curtains. She had never noticed it when she had arrived, though to her credit, she was too tired and exhausted to notice anything. She opened the curtains to reveal the portrait of a middle aged woman whom she recognized as her Aunt Walburga. It was good to see that she had someone more human to talk to. She did not have anything personal against Kreacher but chatting with a house elf was making her feel like an idiot.

"Filth! Scum!-"

A clearing of throat interrupted her tirade. The sight in front of her left Walburga speechless. She recovered from her surprise quickly.

Bellatrix gave a quick bow as per the pureblood customs and said, "Bellatrix Black at your service, Lady Black."

Walburga acknowledged her with a nod and said, "I can see that you have not lost your flair for dramatics. I have to say that I am surprised to see you, a pleasant one compared to many others."

"Well, I am Bellatrix Black even if I am not the Bellatrix you knew.", she replied.

She could not help the widening of her eyes. It was not every day that she hears something like that. She scrutinized the young woman in front of her. The woman in front of her was too young to be her niece. She would be in her early forties now and spending a decade and a half in Azkaban would have made her look older if her son's appearance was anything to go by. There was a possibility that she took a potion to give herself a youthful appearance but even the potions had their limits. She was sure it was not a case of time travel. If it was, everyone who died at her niece's hands would have come back alive and she would not have remembered them dying. So, the only possible explanation left is that she came from an alternate reality.

"I have heard the theory about alternate realities. Many have tried to open a portal to other realities but they have all failed.", she said.

She did not completely deny the possibility but she did not accept it either. The response and reaction to that statement would determine what the young woman's presence meant for the House of Black.

"You are assuming that no one had succeeded and decided to keep their success secret. You have also not considered the possibility that there are realities more advanced than this one.", she replied nonchalantly.

She pursed her lips in frustration. Just when she thought she was going to get some answers, the girl had thrown her for a loop. She would have to try another way.

"What do you want? You would not have approached me if you had not wanted anything.", she said giving the girl a piercing glare.

"I wanted to inform you that I am going to alter the ward structure. So, you will be inactive for some time. The present wards allow every thief and scoundrel in the country access to our house. Considering that we are at war, I am going to upgrade the wards to war setting.", she said.

Bellatrix smirked on seeing her aunt staring at her gob smacked.

"There is no need to look so shocked. I know about the _Death_ wards.", she said.

She saw her aunt's eyes widened further when she saw the Head of the House ring on her hand. Not many know that Grimmauld Place was actually built as a defensive location, a last stand. It had two settings. There was a peace time setting in which the wards are powerful and there was a war time setting in which wards are impenetrable. The wards were so powerful that they were lovingly called the _Death_ wards. The wards were not the only ones affected by the new setting. Everything inside and surrounding the house is supercharged with magic such that they become semi-sentient and attack the intruder on the will of Head of the House. The knowledge of the existence of these wards was kept a secret among the heads and only a few among them even knew how to erect and control the wards effectively. So, she could not blame her aunt for being so shocked. The downside to this new ward setting was that it was necessary to sacrifice someone who was already keyed in to the previous wards to get the required power to start and run the wards. Fortunately, she did have an eligible candidate sitting in the dungeon. She enjoyed the delicious irony of the thief helping in upgrading the security of the house.

Walburga Black was shocked when she saw the Headship ring on the girl's hand. The first thing she did after that was to use her connection to the house and check the wards. She found out that the wards were in fact tied into the girl. But, the girl had complete control of the wards unlike her son who only had limited control over them. That meant she had power over her and could destroy her the moment she decides to. At least, unlike her son, she had not shut her out. From what she had managed to learn of the girl, which was not much, they do agree on many things. She realized that the girl standing in front of her was the future of the Black family and decided to help her to the best of her ability.

"Is there anything I can do to help you?", she asked.

"In fact there is. My knowledge of this reality is limited. I would need all the information I can get to bring our family back to the top. You can help me with that.", Bella replied.

"I will if you tell me about the place you came from.", she said.

Bellatrix tilted her head in contemplation and made a show of thinking before agreeing. She was no fool. She knew very well that the information she would be getting would not be unbiased. She was confident in her ability to extract truth from trash. After all, biased information was better than no information.

"It was a pleasure to talk to you but there are many important matters that demand my time. We will talk later.", she said.

"Go on, child. Do everything to bring prestige back into the family.", she replied.

* * *

Bellatrix spent the next few days slowly and carefully extracting all relevant information from the thief, Mundungus Fletcher. Even if mental health was not necessary for a sacrificial lamb as far as she knew, she had rather not take the risk. Surprisingly, he turned out to be a well of information concerning the goings on in the Knockturn Alley. She now had many contacts in the Alley who could get her anything from illegal wands to undetectable poisons. After his usefulness was over, she conducted the ritual to upgrade the ward system.

"I have not seen you for many days. I did not know that the process of upgrading the wards was that long and complicated.", Walburga asked.

She felt no qualms about admitting that she did not know how to upgrade the wards. She knew that the girl would guess that soon enough as she had never done it herself.

"The ritual was a simple one but it required a human sacrifice. The one I had acquired had more useful information than I had anticipated. Extracting all that information took time.", Bellatrix replied.

She had more sense than to blab every detail to anyone even if that person was a portrait. She was no novice at political games. She gave enough to satisfy her aunt but not enough to be useful. If her aunt had a problem with the incomplete answer, she never showed it.

"As far as I know, the duel between Albus Dumbledore and Gellert Grindelwald was the divergence point of our realities. Am I right?"

"Yes."

"To understand our present situation well, you have to know what exactly happened in the war against Grindelwald. In that war, we all had fought together irrespective of whether we were light or dark, well all except some families like the Malfoys. We had all lost a lot in the war effort. Grindelwald's muggle-wizard combination attack was very effective. Dumbledore was the only one who was strong enough to defeat him but for some reason they kept away from each other. It was in 1945 after the muggle portion of war was over that Dumbledore confronted Grindelwald and he won the resulting duel. Dumbledore became a legend overnight. He rose up the political ranks with time. When he reached a position of power, he allied with the Light sided families and turned against us. He used his influence to pass many laws favoring the Light. It was not difficult for someone who occupied every important position in the wizarding world other than the Minister of Magic."

"Every important position?", Bellatrix asked surprised.

"Yes. He is at present Supreme Mugwump of ICW, Chief Warlock of Wizengamot, Grand Sorcerer of Council of Magical Law, Order of Merlin First Class and the Headmaster of Hogwarts. Why he keeps so many titles is beyond me. The sad fact was that, in his youth, Dumbledore had supported us and was the most outspoken about the unity between Light and Dark. In spite of the fact that he was a Light wizard, we had considered him as one of us and we felt betrayed when he turned on us. We lost a good part of our fortune to war efforts and it was your father's dealings with the muggles that kept us afloat and prevented us from sinking into oblivion like many other families."

Bellatrix felt amusement when she saw a constipated expression cross her aunt's face when she mentioned the muggles. She knew what business her aunt was talking about, at least in her reality. Her father had started doing business with the muggles in the real estate sector. It was laughable how much profit a wizard with sense could make out of a simple Room Expansion charm. Very few knew that the famous business magnet Cassius Bancroft, the owner of a hotel chain spanning across the globe, was her father. As far as she knew, her father had never step foot in the muggle world. He had managed his business through his squib assistant but after she inherited it, she felt a 'hands on' approach was better and personally over saw many details. The results agreed with her by showing an increase in profits.

"In 60's, a new political player emerged who claimed to represent our interests. He was a charismatic young man who called himself Lord Voldemort and was said to be powerful enough to take on Dumbledore. He was outspoken in support of bringing back the Old Ways and the resurgence of the dark families. We never joined him but supported him financially and politically. After all, there was no reason for us to lower ourselves into foot soldiers. We never had any indication that he was intending to start a civil war until the Minister was assassinated in 1971. He was very smart. He knew that many families would get cold feet on learning about the lengths he was willing to take and took steps to keep them in line. By the time war was declared, he had at least one marked Death Eater in most if not all our families. He had his people everywhere from the lowest to the highest strata of society. Anyone who spoke against him or did anything against him either were killed or returned home to find a Dark Mark floating above their home and corpses of their family inside to greet them. We decided that the best way to survive was to outwardly show our support but ensure that none of the family heirlooms or books makes it into his hands. Sirius never made it easy for us by openly hanging around the Potter boy and his riffraff.", she sighed and continued, "Our family has been in decline since the war was declared. The scandal caused by Andromeda's elopement with the muggle Tonks had the first blow. Sirius running away from home was the second blow. Then, Regulus joined the Death Eaters just like he had always wanted to. Even if I was against him making such a big commitment, I never had the heart to spoil his happiness. On hindsight, that was a big mistake on my part. With Cygnus, Druella, Orion and Regulus dying in 1979, I was the only one left in the family. Two years later, in the Halloween of 1981, he attacked the Potters. I don't know what exactly happened but I do know that both the Potters died and the dark lord was not seen for many years. The child, Harry Potter, was the only one known to survive that night. He is said to have survived the Killing Curse and everyone calls him the Boy-Who-Lived."

"How old was this Harry Potter on that day?"

"Somewhere around one and a half. Why?"

"Just curious. What happened next?"

"Next day, Sirius was caught after killing his best friend and twelve muggles and sentenced to a lifetime in Azkaban. I reinstated him into the family and made him my heir sometime after that. Unlike what my son believed, I did not do it because I believed the lies about him being the dark lord's right hand. It was because I did not want the Black family ending with my death. Age had caught up with me and I knew that I would not make it till he gets out. On the same day, Barty Crouch Jr and Lestranges including your other self got caught torturing the Longbottoms and received a lifetime imprisonment as well. As you know, I lived for four years after that. I put up this portrait so that I could guide the one who takes over the reins. I hoped it would be Sirius but we don't always get what we want."

"What happened to the Longbottoms?"

"The torture was much more than they could handle. I heard that they are locked up in their own minds and has been undergoing treatment in St. Mungos since then. They have shown no sign of recovery yet and their only son is living with his grandmother."

Bellatrix had to admit that her aunt had played the game well. She had done an excellent job of showing herself in good light. After all, no one could fault a woman for doing what she believed to be necessary for the survival of her family. From everything she had heard, she learned that her aunt held the same views as Lord Voldemort and had nothing personal against him. The problem she had was the war and its consequences. That had to change for her plan to work. She took out a box and opened it. She brought out a gaudy locket with a serpentine design on them and called Kreacher.

"Yes mistress"

She saw his eyes widening in recognition when he saw the locket.

"You recognize this, don't you? Now, tell me how a Slytherin family heirloom ended up among our heirlooms. I want to hear the complete story.", Bellatrix ordered.

"Master Regulus called me once and told me that the dark lord had a job for me and ordered me to return soon after. The dark lord took Kreacher with him to a cave on which he spilled some blood. The cave opened to a dark passage. Kreacher was very scared. He took Kreacher with him on a small boat across the lake to a small island. Kreacher saw a basin in the middle of it. There was a green liquid inside it. Dark Lord make Kreacher drink everything. It was very disgusting and Kreacher saw things, horrible things. Kreacher nearly went mad. Dark Lord saw Kreacher screaming and laughed. After Kreacher drank everything, the Dark Lord put a locket into it and filled it again. Dark Lord went off leaving Kreacher alone to die. Kreacher felt very thirsty and tried to drink water from the lake but dead people came out of the water and tried to pull Kreacher under water.", he paused.

Kreacher was shaken by what he recalled and was in tears.

"What did you do?", Bellatrix asked.

"Kreacher apparated back as Master Regulus ordered. Master asked what happened and Kreacher told him everything. Master Regulus was very angry. Master ordered Kreacher to take him to that place. Kreacher took him there. We went on a boat again and reached that place. Master Regulus drink that liquid and told Kreacher to take the locket home and destroy it. He also told Kreacher not to tell anyone else about it. Those dead people took master under water and Kreacher couldn't do anything. Kreacher tried to destroy it for years but he failed. That locket is bad. It kept telling Kreacher how he is a bad elf who failed his master."

Bellatrix felt awkward. Consoling distraught elves was not a talent she possessed. But she was pleased to see that it had the intended effect on her aunt.

"Kreacher, elf magic cannot destroy it. So, I will take care of it. Is that why the house had not been cleaned for the last fifteen years? Was it because you were so busy trying to destroy it that you forgot that you had other responsibilities too?", she replied.

Kreacher looked ashamed for a moment before he perked up and said, "If mistress wants Kreacher to clean the house, Kreacher will clean it."

"Do it."

"Yes, mistress", he said before disappearing.

"I don't understand. Being a Death Eater had been Regulus' biggest dream. Why would he muck it up?", Walburga asked.

"May be he learned something that changed his opinion of Death Eaters and the dark lord. I might have an idea what it is but I am not sure.", Bellatrix replied.

"What is it?", she asked curiously.

"If I may ask, how did your husband die?", she asked.

"But-"

"If I am not wrong, he was perfectly healthy with no hint of illness until one day he went to sleep and did not wake up again.", she said.

She felt smug when she saw the shock on her aunt's face.

"I was just guessing but from your face I know it is the truth. I have heard about a special poison extracted from herbs which is undetectable unless you specifically look for it. It remains idle in our system until we sleep. Then, we will never wake up.", she replied.

"Are you sure?", she asked looking almost afraid of the answer.

"I have no proof to be sure of anything but it is a strong possibility. I can tell you one thing for sure. If uncle Orion's death was due to that poison, then he was not the only intended recipient.", she said.

She saw her aunt's eyes widen when the meaning of the sentence sunk in.

"We have so many enemies that there is no way we can know who exactly did it."

"Our family has huge fortune in terms of money and rare tomes, fortune other families can only dream of owning. If you had died then, who would have inherited that fortune?", she asked.

"As Sirius was disowned then, Regulus would have inherited it."

"Regulus who was the servant of Lord Voldemort.", she ignored the flinch and continued, "So, we can safely say that the dark lord would have gotten his hands on it. If Regulus had refused, then he would have gone the same way his father did. Who do you think will inherit it then?"

"House of Lestrange through Bellatrix or House of Malfoy through Narcissa. That is the same as giving it to the dark lord. So, he was trying to destroy the dark lord before he destroyed us. But, I don't understand one thing. Why didn't he try to kill me again?", he aunt said.

"I believe that he intended to do that but he was distracted by something he learned at that time. Surprisingly, I learned it from the thief. Around that time he learned of a prophecy linking him and a boy who we now know to be Harry Potter. He believed that the child mentioned by the prophecy had the power to destroy him. So, he postponed all other plans and set out to find the Prophecy child.", she replied.

"You have given me a lot to think about today. If you don't mind, I would like some privacy now. We will talk later.", she said with a tired sigh.

"Yes ma'am", she replied and closed the curtain.

She let out a victorious smirk that had been threatening to break out on her face for some time. Turning her aunt against Lord Voldemort had been much easier than she had anticipated. She still had a lot of planning and plotting to do. She would have to inquire with their Account Manager about their finances and about the one whom Sirius had chosen to succeed him. She would then have to discuss the possibilities of an alliance with Dumbledore. She would be a very busy woman in the coming days.

* * *

I had not intended to stop here but the chapter became too long. I will write the extra details in the next chapter. Also, next chapter will see Harry and Bellatrix meeting each other.


	2. Bella's Mission

**Disclaimer:**I DO NOT OWN HARRY POTTER, nor do I have any money, so don't bother trying to sue me. I do this for fun, and it is a lot of fun, so on with the story…

* * *

_Thoughts_

" " – Speaking in English

_$ $ – Speaking in Parseltongue_

' ' – _Non verbal spells_

" " – _Speaking in other languages_

* * *

**The Dimensional Traveler Chronicles**

**2: Bella's Mission**

* * *

"_Those we truly love, never really leave us. You can always find them in here …"_

* * *

"_Come on, you can do better than that …" said Sirius after he dodged a stunner. _

_Then he was hit with another red light and his eyes widened and his body arced and fell back very slowly through the thin veil. Her laughter echoed throughout the room filling his head in torment._

* * *

"_She killed Sirius, she killed him … I'll KILL HER!"_

"_Come out, come out, Little Harry," she called him in her mock baby voice. _

"_What did you come after me for then? I thought you were here to avenge my dear cousin!" _

"_I AM" shouted Harry. _

"_Ah, did you love him, little baby Potter?" _

"_Crucio" _

"_Never used an unforgivable curse before, have you, boy? You need to mean the Potter! You need to really want to cause pain – to enjoy it – righteous anger won't hurt me for long – I'll show you how it is done, shall I? I'll give you a lesson – Crucio"_

* * *

"_I have nothing more to say to you Potter, you have irked me too often, for too long. AVADA KEDAVRA!"_

* * *

_And then Harry's scar burst open. _

_He knew he must be dead; it was pain beyond imagining, pain past endurance – he was locked in the coils of a creature with red eyes – fused together – beyond pain. _

_He was standing in front of Dumbledore in the atrium of the Ministry of Magic. _

_A snake was wrapping itself around his insides, squeezing out his very life, controlling his body and taunting Dumbledore. _

"_Kill me now, Dumbledore … If death is nothing, Dumbledore, kill the boy …" _

_Let the pain stop it's killing me. Let him kill us … Let it end … death is nothing compared to this … and I'll get to see Sirius again …_

* * *

_Harry was frozen, locked, looking into the snake-like cold red eyes of his arch enemy, Lord Voldemort. _

_There was nothing else, only two pairs of eyes staring holes into the other. _

_The evil crimson one's were ablaze with absolute hatred and spitting with power and destruction; while the bright emerald eyes shimmered with a pure love and painful loss while radiating an unmatched intensity. _

"_You are weak Potter, you couldn't even save your godfather … another person you love has left you, abandoned you, you are all alone again … and soon you to will join those pathetic scum who succumbed to death. I will destroy you and everyone you have ever cared about, you will be completely abandoned by everyone you have ever loved … you will watch as everyone you have ever cared for is killed before you … and it will all be your fault," hissed the high-pitched snake-like voice of the most feared dark wizard ever to walk the earth, "CRUCIO."_

* * *

"NOOOO", screamed Harry as he quickly sat up in bed sweating and breathing heavily.

It was pitch black, and he knew immediately that it was very late, and he was still stuck in his bedroom at Privet Drive. The dreams kept playing over again even in his now conscious mind, but the closing words of Voldemort left him even more devastated than he already was. Everyone he loved had died, left him all alone, he was already destroyed. It was his own fault that everyone around him was in danger, that those he loved, and who loved him were targets, and those targets had almost all been eliminated, leaving Harry feeling completely alone, helpless, and abandoned. An angry hoot broke Harry's internal reverie, and he quickly looked up to see Hedwig sitting on his window sill skeptically investigating a very regal looking yet unfamiliar raven, with a letter attached to its leg.

"Hedwig", yelled a startled and sweaty Harry with a raspy sore throat, "what's going on?"

Hedwig gave a dignified hoot to Harry before glancing at the raven, and then taking off to Harry's desk with a package still attached to her feet. Harry immediately recognized Ron's handwriting on the top-most letter, and relieved Hedwig of her burden but set aside the stuff from his friends until he solved the question of the mysterious raven. The raven was very professional, and not at all affectionate, as it stood like a statue as Harry removed the letter. Once free, the raven simply disappeared into air. Harry was shocked. He had seen many weird and wonderful things since he was introduced into the magical world five years ago but he had never seen a bird that looked and felt real just disappear as if it had never existed. More surprising was the fact that letter did not disappear with it. He then poked the letter with his wand to ensure that it was real. He waited for some time to see whether it would disappear too but it did not. He saw a feminine handwriting he did not recognize. He assumed it was from some pureblood as the handwriting was too elegant and refined to be for anyone else. The envelope had a familiar seal but he could not recall where he had seen it. He knew that he was no genius like Hermione who could remember every magical theory that ever existed but he was not a complete idiot either. He knew that birds that looked and felt real delivering real letters and then just ceasing to exist was not normal even in the wizarding world. He was curious now. Many would say that he was too curious for his own good. Well, growing up in a boringly normal neighborhood of Privet Drive and having the Dursleys as his role models had its side effects. He only hoped that the present mystery would not include any life-death scenarios. He tentatively opened the letter.

_Harry Potter_

_We do not know each other. So I will begin with introductions. I am known in the muggle world as Altaira Bancroft and that is the name you will know me as … for now. I am the new Head of the Noble and the Most Ancient House of Black. I have learned that you are Sirius' godson. I could give you my condolences but as we do not know each other, I feel it would be inappropriate. I don't know how much you know about the magical world but I know that you have grown up in the muggle world and still live there during holidays. So, I am going to assume that you know nothing about the magical world. In magical world, the status of godson is equivalent to that of a son. As Sirius had never had a child of his own, you are his __**SON**__ by laws of magic. In a magical family, a magical bond exists between the members of the family the strength of which differs in each case. That is the reason a loss of a family member would have greater effect on a magical than on a muggle. I don't think you would have learned it in Hogwarts as those who need to know are purebloods who already know and those who do not already are muggleborns who do not need to know. I believe that, as neither of you had anyone else, you and Sirius had a strong bond due to which it would be harder for you than anyone else. That brings me to the point. You are as much a Black as you are a Potter. You are my family now. I don't have much of a family left and I would like to treasure what little I have left. I will soon be talking to Dumbledore about arranging an opportunity for us to get to know each other. As the head of your family, your well being is my responsibility. But, I will wait until we are both in agreement before I officially take over as your magical guardian._

_ Damn! Now I have to explain another term, don't I? Alright. For a child raised in muggle world at any time in their childhood, there are two types of guardianships: muggle and magical. Magical guardian is a person who handles your affairs in the magical world. By default, the magical guardian of muggle raised children is the Chief Warlock of Wizengamot i.e. Albus Dumbledore but many prefer to have their grandmother, great uncle, cousin or some other magical relative to be the magical guardian. I am sure you would already know that magical guardian has no authority in the muggle world unless magic in some form is involved and vice versa. The important thing you should remember is that the magical guardian does not have to be a blood relative. You could have anyone from Madam Malkin to Garrick Ollivander as your magical guardian if you both are in agreement. For any usual muggle raised child, magical guardian does not have much to do. Their only responsibilities are to ensure that child and the muggle guardians know about magic and to ensure that the muggle guardians don't succeed in stopping the child from going to magical school if they want to. I believe Dumbledore did that duty for everyone including you._

_ But, you are a special child with special needs. A look at last year's Daily Prophet will prove my point. If you had a proper guardian, the first thing they would have done after you reentered our world is to have you sign an Exclusivity contract with a publishing agency of your choice. If you sign the contract, then you would be magically bound to them for a specified period of time and would not be able to give any interviews to any other newspapers. You would also have to give interviews or stand for photo sessions whenever they ask you to. On the other hand, you will get media protection. No other newspapers will be able to pull off the drama like Daily Prophet did. The reporter will even tell you what type of questions are asked and give you pointers on how to answer the questions to raise your standing among public. After all, you leaving them for another agency after the term is over would mean loss of business and reputation for them. Better the devil you have some control over than the devil you have no control over, don't you think?_

_ I have managed to get the transcripts for your underage magic 'trial'. The only good thing that Fudge did was make it a public trial as it made it easier for me to get the transcripts. I don't understand what that idiot was doing? Any good professional attorney would have roasted him over the coals for the things he did. I am surprised and disappointed that you went unprepared for the trial. Was it so hard to hire an attorney? Also, you had the entire Black family library to help you prepare. Don't be surprised. I know that your Order of Chicken was using my home as headquarters. It doesn't matter anyway now that Fudge was kicked out of his chair. Rufus Scrimgeour is the new Minister now and I would advise you not to get on his bad side. He is a lot subtler, craftier and more dangerous than Fudge. Fudge must have really pissed him off because Scrimgeour made Fudge his servant, I mean, assistant. It must be embarrassing for Fudge to act as an errand boy in front of the very people he lorded over as Minister. A fitting punishment indeed! I think I have rambled on more than enough. As you can see, you need a magical guardian, or should I say patron, for whom the only responsibility is you. As I said before, our agreement is enough for me to become your guardian but I believe you will feel safer if Dumbledore arranges our meeting. I guess I will stop now. After all, you would not want me to take over your guardianship if I had nothing else left to teach you, will you?_

_Eager to meet you …_

_Altaira Bancroft_

_P.S.: Call me Tara_

To say Harry was shocked would be an understatement. As funny as it was, his first thought was that he would never call Hermione's letters lengthy ever again. He did not know exactly what to feel as each part brought out a different emotion in him. The part talking about Sirius brought out his pain and guilt. He felt elated that she spend time in explaining everything to him rather than assume that he knew everything. He could not say that of many people. He initially wondered how she knew that he did not know much about the magical world but then realized how silly the thought was. That joke of a trial was proof enough that his ignorance of the working of magical world is as legendary as his flying skills. He silently thanked the writer of the letter as it had served as a wake up call for him. He had been so busy moping around and drowning in his guilt and self-pity that he forgot about the existence of the world outside it. He realized that he could not afford to waste time moping around as it would be one of his best friends who would be paying for his mistakes with their life the next time. He suddenly remembered about his friends and resolved to write each of them a letter thanking them for supporting him when he needed it and apologizing to them for dragging them into what he now knew to be a suicide mission. He decided to read the letter properly again. There might be some clue as to the real identity of Altaira Bancroft.

As she said that she was the head of the Black family, her last name had to be Black. So, that ruled out the anagram theory. He found her magical bond theory interesting. He had initially wondered why he felt much closer to Sirius in spite of the fact that he had met Professor Lupin a year earlier. He had since then accepted that they just understood better as they both had loveless childhoods and had experienced imprisonment for more than a decade. Now, he knew there was more to it than he had assumed. The next part came as a shock to him. He had never known that he had a magical guardian. Why had no one told him that? He decided to ask Hermione about it the next time he saw her. He then wondered whether he was using his workaholic friend as a crutch to avoid doing work. He made a resolve to work harder not only to become an outstanding student without Hermione's help but also to become powerful enough to go one on one with Voldemort. He then read the rest of the letter. It made him realize that his ignorance was more far-reaching than he had initially anticipated. He had never heard of things like Exclusivity contracts before. The fact that he learned more from that letter than a year in school would have been amusing if it was not pathetic. He could not help but notice that majority of her information about him was centered on the last year and she seemed to not know about his feud with Umbridge. He did not understand why that was important as the only thing he could conclude from it was that the person was not a school student. But, he knew for some reason that it was important and decided to file it away for future reference.

He accepted that, whether she can be trusted or not, she had made an important point. All these years, he had been letting everyone, allies and enemies alike, walk all over him. Every year, he had been in a life-death situation at least twice. Regrettably, he had never learned a lesson from them until his godfather paid the price for them. He could not continue like that anymore. He made a resolution that he would always stay a step or two ahead of his enemies. He knew that it would not be easy. He had never been much of a planner but even he knew that he needed proper information for the things he had in mind. Hermione was quite talented in extracting required information from books but her outsider status limited her, and by extension them, in the fields that are dominated by purebloods like politics. He realized that he would need bigger, more diverse group of friends. He would have to get someone that can provide an easy in into the pureblood society. As she said, he would need to learn to play the game of politics to survive for which he would need a patron to teach him. He did not know any one eligible, trustworthy and willing to be his patron which made him consider the risky option of approaching the woman. He rubbed his scar to relieve the headache that had increased with all the thinking he did. From what he could deduce from the letter, the woman seemed to have a similar personality to Tonks: big mouth, weird sense of humor, wild mood swings. She would surely be an interesting person to meet. He decided to owl Dumbledore for advice. As she herself mentioned approaching him, he did not think she would mind it. He opened his trunk and took out all of his books in order to revise everything he had been taught in school. It was only then that he truly realized the difficulty of the task in front of him. He heard a voice in his head that sounded suspiciously like Ron's telling him to put it off for later and rest but he ignored it and started with first year History of Magic.

* * *

Bellatrix arrived in the atrium of Ministry of Magic early morning. It was busy time at the Ministry as they were all coming to work and she was counting on the rush to ensure that no one looked twice at her. She knew that their security would be average at best as they had only recently accepted the return of the dark lord but she was not taking any chances. She had changed her appearance enough that not many would be able to recognize her. She now had straight dirty blonde hair in a traditional updo, blue eyes which are a shade lighter than the ones Black family usually had and a square rimmed glasses. She even changed her facial features slightly to make her look older. She now had the look of a typical Ministry worker. Everyone in her family line had the potential for Metamorphmagi ability but it had always remained latent. But, it was partially activated in her as a side effect of a ritual she had performed. She could not completely change herself to be a look alike of someone else like myths stated a metamorphmagus to be capable of but she could manipulate her features enough to not be recognizable. That was more than enough for her current mission. The queue quickly emptied and her turn came.

She approached the security desk and handed over her wand, well, the wand of an ancestor she had picked up from her home. She could not hand over her real wand as she had made it herself. So, it was untraceable and left no magical signature, perfect for someone involved in illegal activities.

"Your name?", a voice broke into her thoughts.

She observed the boy in front of her. He was as young as he was nervous. By his looks, she would guess that he was just out of school. It was obvious by the way he was eyeing her assets that he was as pure as the day he was born. A smirk came unbidden on to her face as she imagined the fun she could have at the boy's expense.

"Altaira Bancroft", she purred.

The boy flustered at her tone. She had initially considered giving a completely fake name but she later decided otherwise. He registered the wand and gave it back. She made sure to let her hands brush his slightly when she took back her wand. She gave him a saucy smile and a wink causing a pink tinge to spread across his cheeks. She then walked away towards the lift swaying her hips knowing that the boy was looking at her.

Bellatrix pressed the call button and waited for the lift. The lift arrived a moment later and she entered it and pressed number two. The lift rattled and started on its way to the floor containing the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and her first stop. The lift paused on the seventh floor, the Department of Magical Games and Sports, and two people entered the lift hesitantly. The lift proceeded to level five, Department of International Magical Cooperation, and one more person entered the lift. He was a stout little man and had wild mustache that seemed to reach his shoulders. He greeted one of the other men happily by name and struck up a conversation completely ignoring everyone else. She was amused at the things she had learned just by standing in a lift. Without further interruption, the lift arrived at level two, Department of Magical Law Enforcement. She cleared her throat causing the people to part ways for her and she left the lift.

She was about to put the Disillusionment charm on herself when she was knocked over from behind. She heard another sound and her battle instincts took over. In the split second that followed, she had her wand pointed at the person's throat and her right hand had sparks coming out of it ready to attack the imbecile who thought that she was an easy target. She stretched her senses outwards to check for other hostile elements in the area and found none. She was interrupted from her analysis by an 'eep' sound. She realized that it was made by a young girl on the floor who had found herself in the unfortunate position of facing the wrong end of her wand.

The girl held her hands to show that she meant no harm and said, "I am sorry. It is my fault. I was in a hurry and I did not see where I was going."

"I can be a little clumsy at times", she added when it did not look like the woman was going to relax.

Bellatrix scrutinized the girl in front of her and realized that she was genuinely frightened. She felt smug knowing that she was the one who instilled the fear in her. After all, it was the sign that she was superior to the girl in front of her. She withdrew her wand from the girl's throat and got up letting the girl relax. She extended her hand to her and helped the girl get up. It was then that she really had the chance to observe the other girl. She was wearing an Auror uniform which seemed to have been put on hastily, was of average height, had violet eyes and magenta colored hair. She felt as if she was missing something. It was a moment later that she realized what her mind was trying to tell her. The young girl in front of her was a metamorphmagus, a true one not a pseudo one like her. She cursed her luck. Had the circumstances being different she would have been excited to make the acquaintance of a true metamorphmagus. It would have been a good way to see if her abilities were really as limited as she had assumed. Considering the present predicament, the combination of Auror and Metamorphmagus was a dangerous one. She saw the girl in front of her scrutinizing her and involuntarily stiffened. She hoped the girl did not have the ability to see through her transformations. She did not know the full extent of a true metamorphmagus' powers as she had never met one before.

"You look familiar for some reason but I don't remember seeing you before.", she said.

She looked over the girl in search of something to divert the conversation from the dangerous waters and saw her badge with something inscribed on it. She concentrated on the words and saw that it was Nymphadora T.

"I have heard that a lot of times. I guess I have just got that look. I apologize for the way I reacted. I am sure you can understand considering the times that we live in. We don't know who is a friend and who is an enemy. You can never be too careful these days.", Bellatrix replied.

It did cause a change in direction but not the one she had intended.

"There is a big difference between being careful and being paranoid. I have never seen anyone move that fast before. I am an Auror myself and I could never draw my wand that quickly. You know, Moody would have given up what parts of his body he has left to have you in his team.", Nymphadora said awe and respect evident in her voice.

"You are saying that because it is your first experience of a war. If you manage to survive this war and live until the next one, you will be just like me.", she replied smugly.

She did not consider herself vain but she had never been accused of being humble. She saw the girl scrunching her nose and held in a smirk. She was now sure that the girl had Black blood in her. She did not remember seeing anyone named Nymphadora in the family tree but she was sure that the girl would not be difficult to find later on.

"Forgive me if I am wrong but weren't you in quite a hurry when you collided with me?", she asked.

Nymphadora's face took on a look of horror and she ran off saying, "I am already late. If I waste more time, Moody will slowly torture me to death. We will meet later, if I manage to survive."

The sight was so funny that it took all of her pureblood training not to laugh out loud. She did not fail to notice that the girl had not asked for her name. She wondered whether the girl was always forgetful or was the day difficult for her. Well, she was not planning to remind her anyway. It was a good thing that she did not have to use any mental suggestions to send her off. She preferred not to take that route unless necessary even if the recipient happened to be an unimportant muggle. She genuinely liked the girl and found her to be entertaining. After ensuring that no one was looking in her direction, she quickly put Disillusionment charm and Silencing charm on herself. She then added a Notice-Me-Not charm as an afterthought. With a swirl, Bellatrix disappeared completely from view.

She walked down the hallway ignoring the scenes the windows projected. She stopped at the door to the Auror Headquarters and took a deep breath. Bellatrix turned the handle and was met with the sounds of a busy office. She slipped into the room silently and stayed close to the left wall. She saw a few people walking about discussing things and a few paper airplanes floating about near the ceiling.

Bellatrix slinked her way to the rear of the room where a closed door sat beneath a small, hanging sign that read 'Improper Use of Magic Office'. Under the sign was a name plate 'Mafalda Hopkirk'. She pushed her magic out and searched for the wards and was surprised to find none. She wandlessly opened the door and slipped in closing the door behind her.

She heard the sound of quills working on parchment coming from a room in the back. She had a short wall blocking her view of the small office where she knew Mafalda Hopkirk was waiting. She walked to the wall and peered over it. She saw a well kept desk directly behind the wall and Mafalda sitting there methodically sorting papers. A large stack of papers were already sitting in an out-going box. Bellatrix saw another door in the rear of the office and the quill sound was coming from in there.

Bellatrix slid around the short wall and worked her way to the rear door and found it to be unlocked, but Mafalda was sitting at her desk sorting papers. She saw a chance to get in without her noticing. She created a breeze in the room strong enough to cause some papers to slip out of alignment and fall off the desk. Mafalda noticed the papers shift and reached out with her short arms and try to stop them from falling over. Her efforts only caused the stack to fall over in a very dramatic way.

Papers were scattered in all directions and Mafalda cussed once before getting out of her chair and started picking up the papers. Bellatrix retreated to the back door and opened it when she saw the chance. Inside the room she saw at least thirty translucent spheres, that looked similar to the crystal balls, were kept on wooden stands. There was a quill hovering above a piece of parchment near the crystal. She saw labels on the plaque in front of the device and moved to get a better look. One read 'Wales', another was 'South London', another was 'North London'. The list kept going. Many major cities had their own device.

After a few minutes, Bellatrix found the device she was after. On this device was written 'Harry Potter' in dark writing underneath which was scribbled 'Surrey'. She wondered why she had not noticed it before as it was dissimilar to other devices. While other crystal balls had rust on them or were dented, this device was clean and well maintained. The stand that held the particular device was bigger and was made of stronger wood. Her knowledge in magic tracking devices were limited but even she could see that it was more sophisticated than the rest. She had learned recently that Harry Potter was an important person in this world but she had no idea that he was that important.

She observed the device more carefully and had a sudden epiphany. She knew that, by law, the wand makers were obliged to cast certain charms on the wands they make which helps the Ministry to monitor the wand and indirectly the owner of the wand. There were two parts in it. The first was for underage wizards which will automatically deactivate the moment the owner comes of age. The other will remain until the wand was destroyed or the specific counter charm was cast. They had initially intended to monitor everyone but they soon realized that it was an overly expensive and impractical venture. So, they later decided to monitor only those with criminal background or suspected to be a danger to the society. In spite of its initial success, it turned out to be another big failure when a major loop hole in the law was found. There was nothing in the law prohibiting the wand makers from removing the charm on the wands they did not create or from teaching the counter charm to their customers. In a few years time, everyone who was part of the traditional dark families and even some of light and neutral families had the Ministry charms removed. It was common for the parents of those families to take their children to the wand shop in Knockturn Alley to remove the charms right after they bought their wand from Ollivander. The law had never been repealed in spite of the fact that it had become obsolete.

As the devices required to perform such a detailed monitoring was expensive and high on maintenance, they got rid of them. No one knew exactly what had happened to them but if she was right, one of them was right in front of her. The devices used later were simple ones which could only monitor the magic cast in an area. So, any underage witch or wizard could get away with doing magic during the summer as long as there was a magical adult in the area. It seemed that it was not the case for Harry Potter. As the Ministry had an advanced device monitoring his wand, he would not be able to do magic anywhere outside Hogwarts where they don't have any authority. There was also the fact that the Ministry could continue monitoring him well into his adult years and possibly till his death. She wondered whether he was so powerful and influential that Fudge considered him a bigger threat than other well established players like Malfoy and Dumbledore. She licked her lips in excitement. She had always liked her men young and since she was a child she had had a thing for power. Both of them in a single package was a dream come true. She felt her spine tingle in pleasure at the very thought of being his dark consort. She shook her head forcibly bringing herself out of her fantasy land. He was much younger than the men she had gotten into her bed before. For all she knew, he could turn out to be an ordinary boy with mediocre abilities. She let out a deep breath and forced herself to concentrate on her job.

Bellatrix took out a camera and took many photos. She then cast a Freezing charm at the device. Nothing specific happened but she knew that it had worked. She reminded herself to remove the Ministry charms of Harry Potter's wand when she meets him. She did not know whether the Freezing charm would be temporary or permenant. She had many plans for the boy and she was not going to risk some bumbling fools poking their ugly noses in places where they do not belong. When she had prepared plans to sneak into the Ministry, she had initially had no intention to disable the underage detectors. She had actually planned for Harry to live with her but Dumbledore had been adamant about him staying with his muggle relatives. That was the one thing the old man was unwilling to budge on. After she had that talk with her aunt's portrait, she had sent Kreacher to learn everything he could about Harry Potter, his family and the neighborhood. She was not happy with what she had heard. So, she prepared a plan for that. She had learnt to consider the possibility of failure and prepare plans to enact in that scenario. Disabling the detectors was part of that secondary plan.

Bellatrix ensured that the disillusionment charm was still in place and opened the door slightly. She saw Mafalda finishing up on rearranging her papers. She had her back to the door and she was sure she heard her mumbling under her breath. She slipped out of the detector room and closed the door. Moving very carefully, Bellatrix worked her way to the front of the room and the exit that led to the Auror department. Mafalda was done sorting her papers and was sitting down again. She looked over the barrier making sure she was far enough away in case she heard her open the door.

_Now is my chance._ Bellatrix opened the door quickly and silently. She slipped out of the room and closed the door. Once the door was closed, she retreated to the door leading out to the hallway. She kept one eye out for aurors and one on Mafalda's door. When she reached the doorway to the hall, she saw two aurors coming into the room. She waited for them to move away from the door before she approached it. In one quick motion, Bellatrix opened the door and slipped through to the hallway. Once she was in the hallway, she removed the Disillusionment charm but kept the others. She still had a mission to do and had no time for any other clumsy idiots.

She quickly got into the lift and pressed number eight. It was time for the second part of her mission. The lift chimed at a floor other than the one she had wanted. She noticed that they were on level five and saw a tall, slightly stocky, middle aged man with ginger hair step into the lift and press the button for level seven. She felt her lips curl automatically in disgust. She could easily deduce that he was a Weasley by the color of his hair. Even though she was not as strict about blood purity as many others in her circle, she could not stand them. They were the embodiment of all the qualities of Light family. Everyone she met from that clan had turned out to be arrogant jerks who always boasted about having the moral high ground when they were as bigoted as the one they look down upon if not more.

When the lifts reached her level, Bellatrix stepped off the lift as soon as the doors opened. She quickly reapplied the Disillusionment charm and moved down the long hallway which had doors on both sides every twenty feet or so. There were letters on each door for every letter of the alphabet. Bellatrix sped up her pace so she could get to door 'P' and get home. Seeing an 'N' on the door to her left, she knew that 'P' was going to be next. She walked the twenty feet and found it. She scanned the door for wards or intruder alarms and found none but she found out that it was locked by an advanced locking charm which required a specific counter. It was not a problem for a witch of her skills. She opened it and moved inside closing the door behind her.

She lit the lamps around the room and started searching the long room for his name. There were shelves and shelves of folders inside of boxes. The shelves were along the outer wall and a set of shelves were in the middle of the room as well. The organizational method seemed to be by family name. Bellatrix started at the end, on her right, and started looking at the labels on the boxes. 'Pyrite' was the last name on the last box.

Spending the next few minutes searching, Bellatrix found the box labeled 'Potter'. She pulled the box off the shelf and found that the outside of the box was completely clean of dust. She had found some boxes that had layers of dust on them meaning that the people had either done nothing worth documenting for years or that the family was dead. The 'Prewett' box was covered in dust confirming her belief that Molly Prewett Weasley's activities were filed under 'Weasley'.

Once Bellatrix had the box on the floor, she removed the top and looked inside. There were rows of miniaturized folders lined up side-by-side. She could see that there were a few levels worth of folders as well. Searching for a while, she found a section that had a small label on it marked 'Harry James Potter, 1980'. She pulled out the section and set it on top of the rest of the files. She enlarged the section and opened the front of the folder. The first sheet was a certificate of live birth stating that Harry had been born on July 31th, 1980 at St. Mungo's at 12:46 P.M. to Lily and James Potter. She ran through the whole to ascertain that it was what she had in mind and kept it back. She then took an empty box that was sitting at the end of the row and copied the entire contents of the original box into it. She returned the original box to its rightful place and pocketed the new box after sealing and shrinking it. Moving to the door, Bellatrix extinguished the lamps with a wave of her hand. With a feeling of accomplishment bursting from inside, she opened the door and exited the room.

She went back the way she came. She had been intending to apparate home straight away but when she reached the room 'B', she had a different idea. She quickly got in and found her family's records next to that of Bones'. She quickly copied the Black family records in the same way and exited the room. As much happy as she was with the success of her mission, she was disappointed at the ease of her success. She had expected some challenge and had come all prepared with many emergency plans. She would be the first one to admit that the British Ministry of Magic in her reality was no utopia. It had its share of idiots, incompetents and greedy politicians but it was nothing compared to the sheer incompetence here. In her reality, the Ministry headquarters was well warded inside and outside as the politicians, in spite of their misgivings, care about their health and safety. With how incompetent the Ministry was, she was surprised that the dark lord had not taken it over already. _Maybe the dark lord and the Death Eaters are as incompetent as the Ministry._

One of her favorite escape plans was employing a Reverse Portkey. As far as she knew, the knowledge of it was nonexistent in the present reality. It was something she had created herself unlike the Portkey Destroyer spell whose knowledge she had extracted out of one of Grindelwald's men she had captured and so she took personal pride in it. She had kept her creation a secret and it turned out to be useful once or twice. A portkey was an object which was charmed to teleport to a certain destination when the required conditions were satisfied taking along everyone who was in contact with it directly or indirectly. In that case, magical connection between the object and the destination was established. A reverse portkey is an object kept at the final destination charmed to pull an object or person with which it had established a magical connection upon fulfilling certain conditions. There were two ways to operate it. First was to connect it to the intended person and time it such that they would be pulled at the required time. Second was to connect it to something the person would carry with them. That object, which in her case was her necklace, would act as an activator where the person can activate the reverse portkey any time by touching that object. Reverse portkeys are tedious, difficult to set up, more power consuming and unable to create on the go unlike the regular portkeys but they are more stable, accurate and it bypasses every Anti-Portkey ward known to exist. After all, no ward could be created to prevent a mode of travel not known to exist. Bellatrix fingered her necklace wondering whether she should apparate or use the portkey. After a moment of contemplation, she clutched her necklace and activated it.

* * *

It is heartening to get such a good feedback. I know that many of you are confused. So, I will clear it up. As I have already stated, the story starts in the summer after Harry's fifth year. There is an important reason for Bellatrix arriving at that time which will be explained in the next chapter. The next chapter will clear all the doubts you have.


	3. Meeting Tara

**Disclaimer:**I DO NOT OWN HARRY POTTER, nor do I have any money, so don't bother trying to sue me. I do this for fun, and it is a lot of fun, so on with the story…

* * *

_Thoughts_

" " – Speaking in English

_$ $ – Speaking in Parseltongue_

' ' – _Non verbal spells_

" " – _Speaking in other languages_

* * *

** The Dimensional Traveler Chronicles **

**3: Meeting Tara**

**5 July 1996**

* * *

Bellatrix let out a sigh of relief. She had reached the address at last. She had not been here for long but she was already starting to hate the place. Every house looked exactly like the other houses. It was as if these people hated anything different. She gently parked her new car just outside the house and got out. She could have just apparated straight in front of the house but she had always loved flashy entrances. It took a lot of effort to find the right house but that woman, Yonne or Vonne or something was very helpful. The woman seemed surprised that she was looking for Harry Potter. When she told her the reason, the muggle variation, the woman's face took on an expression of shock and betrayal. It was only when she took a peek into her mind that she understood the reason. Well, Petunia Dursley would soon realize that she had crossed the wrong person.

She went up to the door and knocked on it. The door opened and a horse faced woman with a constipated expression on her face and a neck long enough to make a giraffe jealous came out.

"Mrs. Dursley, is your husband in? I would like to discuss a few matters with him.", she said.

She saw Petunia looking her over and felt smug when her face took on an expression of jealousy and loathing._ It looks like the inferior creature can recognize her superior after all. I wonder whether she knows how to greet me properly. If she doesn't, I can always teach her._

"If you don't have enough manners to invite a guest in-", she said loudly.

Petunia backed away as if she had been burned and opened the door widely. She was looking outside in both directions checking whether anyone had heard her and destroyed her precious reputation in the neighborhood. _Too late, Petunia._

She strode into the house and saw two hulking figures. The older one was busy tying his shoelaces and had not noticed her yet. He was a living example of why the term 'obese' was not good enough anymore. Apparently, his head was so heavy that his neck was crushed to a non-existent state. The younger one had noticed her and appreciated what he saw, in his own primitive Neanderthal way.

"Mr. Dursley, can you spare a few minutes of your time for me? I would like to speak with you about a matter of mutual benefit.", she said.

He indicated to a seat in front of him. It was only after she sat down that he looked up.

"What business would you like to discuss?", he asked.

"I am here to speak about your nephew Harry Potter-"

"That's it. I knew it. You are one of those freaks-"

Bellatrix snapped her fingers and Petunia found her mouth stitched shut.

"Go sit next to your husband, woman. I am an important person. My time is very precious and I will not waste it on low class women who do not know their place.", she said coldly.

The sudden loss of her speech scared Petunia so much that she scurried away to her assigned seat. She saw, to her amusement, that the other two were still trying to figure out what had happened. She could not blame them as they were used to people requiring a wand to do magic.

"The next time you act like a five year old, you will find yourself standing in the corner facing the wall.", she told Petunia.

She saw Vernon opening his mouth to speak and quickly spoke up.

"As I was saying before I was rudely interrupted, I am Harry Potter's new guardian and I am here to take him with me. He will be staying with me from now on. I wanted to know whether you had any objections to that.", she said.

Any hostility Vernon Dursley might have felt due to her handling of his wife seemed to have disappeared when he heard the key words. She saw his beady eyes glint with glee and his moustache twitch in excitement.

"Good riddance. We had never wanted the boy anyway but he was left at our footstep with no way of returning him. We only took care of him due to the goodness of our hearts. We took him in, fed him, put clothes on his back and a roof over his head in spite of how ungrateful he is. You can take him with you.", he replied.

She noted with amusement that his cheeks had turned a shade of puce. She wondered whether the rant was the biggest exercise he had ever done in a while.

He won't be coming back next year, will he?", he asked much more calmly with an undertone of hope.

"I personally would prefer that he not see this place ever unless he inherits it. But Dumbledore wants him to stay here until the moment he turns 17. Then again, we cannot expect anything else from a politician, can we?", she replied giving him a resigned sigh.

She knew that ordinary people tended to have opinions, mostly bad, about those in politics. She guessed that people like the Dursleys who fiercely hate anything not fitting their narrow minded view of normality and are intensely jealous of those who are more powerful and influential than they are would be more opinionated about these things. The change in his demeanor told her that she had guessed right.

"So, your Dumbledore fellow is a politician. I am not surprised. These people always meddle in the matters of normal folk who, unlike them, work hard to earn their living and make our life hell. The audacity of the man to tell me what I should do in my own home.", he replied.

He then scrunched his eyes in what could have passed for as shrewd look and said, "I thought Dumbledore fellow was the Headmaster."

"Albus Dumbledore is no simple politician. He holds many posts in our world. He is not only the Head master of a school but also the head of our legislative and judicial bodies, head of our International Confederation, Order of Merlin First Class and the Grand Sorcerer. He is the unofficial advisor of the head of our government and possibly yours too. I would not be surprised if he had been ennobled by your Queen. He has loyal followers in important positions in every field of magic known to exist. I might disagree with him on many matters but I have enough sense to know that crossing him would not be good for me.", she replied.

She withheld a smile when she saw his face whiten. It was obvious that he had no idea who he was dealing with till now. She felt amused that by stating a few well known facts she managed to make Dumbledore look like the bad person. She knew that she was being immature but she did not care. After all, it was Dumbledore who insisted on Harry Potter staying here. It was only fair that he shoulders the blame for it. The muggle hated everything magical anyway. It would matter much if he started hating one of them more than the others.

"I am late for work. The boy is in his room up the stairs. When I return, I don't want to see the boy or his belongings in the house.", he said and left the house quickly.

He had tried to look intimidating but his pale face and shaking hands made the attempt a joke. Bellatrix shook her head in pity. The man was a bigger idiot than she had assumed. She had given him a big hint as to the plans she had for them and they never got it. She would be doing a huge service to the society by getting rid of them. She had to give him credit for one thing though. He loved his wife and child more than anything else in the world and was faithful to them. During their conversation, not once had his gaze moved away from her face in spite of her rather tempting attire unlike his son who had been too busy undressing her with his eyes to notice anything else. She could see how he became a successful business man. Being the eldest of her family, she could respect him for it. Unfortunately, for him, that respect would not be enough to save him from her wrath. She was about to get up when she saw the woman wave her hands frantically.

"Don't worry. The spell will wear off on its own. I am sure a day of silence would do you a lot of good.", she said.

Bellatrix had cast the spell such that it would lose its effect after she left the house but Petunia did not need to know that. The expression of terror on her face was well worth it. She went up the stairs and stood outside the room. The door had many locks on it and had a cat flap. She realized that Kreacher had not exaggerated at all. If he had not informed her, she would have assumed that the room was used to house pets and moved on. She waved her hand melting all the locks. At this point, she usually would have knocked on the door and asked for his permission to enter but she was too curious and, she would admit it only to herself, eager to meet the boy she had heard a lot about. She opened the door slightly and slid in gently closing the door behind her.

* * *

Most of the room was filled by the clutter of broken toys of every variety. In the corner of the room was what could be barely passed off as bed. On it small, scrawny boy with black hair stuck up in all directions wearing a dress which looked many sizes too large for him. She saw him eagerly reading a book on his lap and practicing the wand movements with his wand. There were many other books nearby either open at some page or closed with a bookmark inside it. She knew she should have been angry at him for being so unaware of his surroundings that he did not know of a potential enemy standing close enough to easily kill him but for some reason she was not. It was such an adorable sight that she felt a smile creep up her face despite her best efforts.

"Just so you know, you can now actually cast the spells instead of acting like it.", she said startling him.

He quickly turned in her direction and pointed his wand in her direction in an attempt at looking intimidating. As she had interrupted him in the middle of a wand movement, when he pointed the wand at her, it lost its alignment and nearly fell from her hand. He righted the balance quickly, but there was enough time for a competent fighter to kill him let alone someone of her capabilities.

She held up her hands in a surrender pose and said, "I love Acid Pops?"

Harry relaxed lowering his wand slightly but never enough to be a serious disadvantage. He had received the password in the last letter Dumbledore had given him. So, he knew that it was his guardian and not some imposter. He took a good look at her and nearly swooned. She was a tall woman with black curly hair, dark violet eyes and impish smile on her face that spoke of mischief. She was wearing a black, sleeveless V neck dress that showed a generous amount of her cleavage and a little bit of her breasts, which was much larger than he would have expected of a girl as lean as her if what he could see was any indication, and the dress was so short that most of her long, milky white legs was exposed for the world to see. With so much skin exposed, he was confused as to where to look, not that he was complaining, mind you. _Damn! If at least some girls would have dressed like this, the school would have been a much more enjoyable experience._

"Do you like what you see, Harry Potter?", she asked making him blush.

He just realized that he had been ogling her too openly and had been caught. He opened his mouth to say something but what came out was a blubbering mess. He took a deep breath trying to clear his face off the evidence of his embarrassment.

"I am sorry. I didn't mean to-"

"Don't be sorry. I am flattered that you appreciate the effort I have put for you.", she said.

"For me?", he squeaked.

"Potter, you are a hormonal 16 years old and I am an incredibly good looking woman wearing provocative clothing. When you see me, if you are thinking about various strategies Voldemort might use or about the advantages and disadvantages of various battle tactics, then there is something seriously wrong in that department and you desperately need help.", she said tapping the side of her forehead.

He could not help it. He laughed out loud. It felt weird, as if he had not laughed for a long time, he probably had not. He mused that his deductions were spot on. She had the same sense of humor as Tonks but after the farce of a date last year, he had enough sense not to speak it out.

"You said something about casting spells when you arrived. I can't. As you already know, the last time I did magic, I was nearly expelled.", he said to divert the conversation to areas he was comfortable with.

"Yes, I know about Fudge making a mockery of our justice system. This is my first gift to you. Though I personally think it is useless, there is a chance it might be of use.", she said throwing a packet at him.

He deftly caught it earning an approving nod from his new guardian. He opened it and saw that it had lot of photos.

"They show the devices that the Ministry use to detect underage magic. They have one each for large areas like Wales, North London, South London and each for big cities. But, if you look through the photos, you will learn that they have one specifically trained on you. The device even has your name written in big size and Surrey written below it in a smaller size. I cast a Freezing charm on the device and disabled it. As you can see, most of them are simple devices which records the magic usage in a given area but the one with your name on it is a more sophisticated one which, in addition to its usual job, also monitors your every movement through your wand as long as you are within its range, i.e., anywhere in England and Wales.", she gave a reply to his unasked question.

He looked through the photos and finally found the one that had been trained on him. She was right. They had never even bothered to hide its true purpose. He felt anger rise within him at the extents to which they had gone to get rid of him.

"I hope you will keep this between us. The means with which I got this done wasn't technically legal.", she said.

Harry took a few deep breaths and calmed down. He knew that she was only helping him and did not deserve his anger.

"Don't worry! You are not exactly the first person to sneak into the Ministry. At least you have never used the Cruciatus curse on anyone while you were there.", he replied.

She had taken the leap of faith in their relationship by revealing something that could get her into trouble. So, he reciprocated. He could see that she was surprised that he had told her that. As far as he could see, she was indifferent about his choice of the curse. Then again, she was a Black. She must have been used to Dark Arts growing up.

"You said that what you did served no purpose in the end. Why?", he asked.

"There are two reasons. If I have my say, you would not be returning here. You would be living with me until you turn 17.", she replied.

He looked at her shocked. It was true that he had deduced her intention from her letter but guessing was one thing and hearing from the person was another thing. He had always wanted to leave Dursleys since he was old enough to understand things like that. In the last few years, he had hoped to be able to live with Sirius after he managed to clear his name. That would never happen anymore. The thing that saddened him the most was that he had never had the chance to get to know his godfather properly. The only times he had been truly happy last year had been when Sirius had told him many embarrassing stories about his parents and their friends through the mirror set. Unlike during vacations when Sirius was more guarded, during their conversations, he was carefree and truly happy. Sadly, with the mess that his last year was, he had rarely gotten the time to chat with Sirius through the mirror set. After he got the vision, he had straight away went to his room and tried to contact Sirius but was unsuccessful. He felt like an idiot when Dumbledore had later told him that Sirius' mirror was broken and he had been trying to get it fixed. Now, he had just learned one of his greatest wishes was going to be fulfilled. It was a bittersweet moment. He was happy that he was going to live with someone who actually cared about him but he wished he would not have had to pay such a heavy price for it.

"You never asked me about the second reason.", she asked startling him from his thoughts.

"Uh-huh", he muttered eloquently.

"Alright! What is the second reason?", he asked.

"There is a subsection in The Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery Act 1857 that allows a magical child 15 years and above to apply for Underage Magic waivers to DMLE. All you have to do is to submit a filled form with your guardian's signature. Even though boys can take advantage of it, it was mainly meant for girls. So, they will be informed by their head of the house.", she replied.

"But why is it mainly for girls?", he asked even though he had a feeling that he would regret it.

She raised an elegant eyebrow at his hesitation. She felt amused when she saw that he was genuinely confused. _This is going to be fun._

"Two words, Potter. Contraceptive charm."

She smirked on seeing red coloring form on his cheeks.

"In most cases, girls are the ones who would be casting the charm. But, the boy would have to cast it if the girl is a muggle. The muggle methods except the permanent ones do not work if at least one of the participants is magical. If the boy is more magically powerful than the girl his power would override her protective charms. So, he would have to be the one to cast it."

"Enough!", he said more loudly than he had meant to, "You don't need to give the talk now. We can talk about something else."

He took deep breaths to clear away the blood that had rushed to his face. Unlike what his best friends thought, he was not hopelessly naïve and oblivious to everything going on around him. He had gone past the 'girls have cooties' stage long ago. He had received many books and other materials of mature content from Fred and George as 'benefits' of being the financial supporter of Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. It was an … educational experience.

"But, if all the sensors except mine are meant to merely detect the magic in an area, how would they know who did the magic in a household having an adult wizard or witch?", he asked.

"They don't. They expect the adults to be responsible and monitor the magic usage of children.", she replied nonchalantly.

"Are you saying that law was specifically made to restrict the muggleborns?", he asked sharply.

"I am not saying anything specifically as I know that you are smart enough to understand. Just remember that the law was created to support the International Statute of Secrecy. So, there is no use in applying it in an area where there is no chance of a muggle witnessing an act of magic.", she replied to which he nodded.

"I don't understand one thing. I have stayed in Burrow, the Weasley home, many times but I have never seen any of the children do any magic.", he said.

"I don't know how well known the information I gave you is. So, I cannot say anything. I will tell you this. If magic is done in the Weasley household, there is no way for the Ministry to determine whether a _Weasley _had cast the magic let alone the identity of the person."

"When you stayed at their house, did you ever go out?", she asked sensing his confusion.

"Yes, we sometimes play Quidditch on the grounds or sit in the orchard.", he replied.

"Harry, when I asked whether you went out, I meant out of the house. Did you roam the neighborhood and meet new people?", she asked to which he replied in negative.

"So, you know nothing about the place the Weasley household is located, do you?", she asked.

"No, I was never let out much due to safety concerns.", he said embarrassed.

She gave a long suffering sigh and started explaining, "Ottery St. Catchpole is a small village to the north of London. A section of the village has been claimed by the wizards and has been warded to keep muggles away. This section houses a wizarding community where all of its member families are traditional farming families like Weasley, Lovegood, Diggory, Fawcett, Longborne and so on. Is that enough?"

He nodded in daze. Whenever he felt that he had gotten a grasp of the wizarding world, he would learn something new that showed him how ignorant he actually was.

"Have you finished packing?", she asked raising her eyebrow.

"I already packed most of it. I only kept the books out so I can get some studying done.", he replied cringing when he realized that he sounded just like Hermione.

He saw her picking up one of the Dudley's cast offs with her wand keeping the cloth as far away from her as physically possible.

"I know that you are proud of your ah … conquests. But, are you taking all the elephant skin with you?", she asked.

He looked at her in shock. From her expression, he could not tell whether she was joking or serious. She had a perfect poker face on.

"No. Only reason I wore it was so that Dursleys would not know that I can afford to buy new clothes. Those greedy bastards will then demand access to my vault in return for letting me stay here even if they work me like a slave and provide the barest minimum they can get away with.", he replied.

Bellatrix nodded and with a flick of her wand burned them. Harry could not help but feel vindictive pleasure when he saw one of the symbols of his unhappy childhood get destroyed. She then checked him and all of his belongings for any charms.

"Have you found anything?", he asked his innate curiosity overriding his patience.

"Most of your belongings are clean. But there were some tracking charms and eavesdropping charms on a few items which I have removed.", she replied.

It was while she was searching for charms that she found something interesting. She picked it up to look at it properly. It looked like a mirror that seemed to have broken when it took a fall. She could have sworn that she had seen it before but she could not remember where she had seen it assuming that she had.

He realized that his throat had gone dry. He felt bile rise up in his throat. His vision was blurring and his breaths were progressively getting more ragged and uneven. Suddenly, he felt a hand on his shoulder and he felt himself relax. He saw Bellatrix take hold of his other shoulder and guided him to the bed.

She made him sit on the bed and said, "I will not ask whether you are alright. I can see that you are not. Why don't you relax? I am not a touchy feely person but I can lend a friendly ear if you need it."

It was then that she noticed that there was a symbol etched in the lower part of the back of the mirror. She recognized it as the Black family insignia and deduced that it must be one of the family heirlooms. Looking carefully, she suddenly realized that it was one of the Twin mirrors. She did not understand why it had such an effect on the boy but she knew that she would learn about it soon enough.

He closed his eyes and let out a long breath in resignation. He had been so diligently studying the last few days that he had never had the time to think about the DOM fiasco. Being reminded of it suddenly almost gave him a panic attack. He had tried his best to be strong as he did not want his guardian to think that he was not worth her time. Apparently, it had not been good enough. He felt her sit next to him and pull him to her in a one arm hug.

"Losing someone is always a difficult experience, Harry. I am not going to lie to you and say that everything is going to be alright. We are not living in a fairy tale world where everything ends with a happily ever after. This is the real world. The pain will always be there. We will just learn to deal with it better with time.", she said.

She had no way to know whether the reason for his breakdown was the loss of a loved one or not but she had seen enough in life to make an educated guess. Considering that the recently deceased Sirius Black was his godfather, it was not easy to come to that conclusion. She did not fail to notice that Harry Potter only resembled a teenager physically. His small and malnourished form made him look like someone who had just entered his teens but his eyes were that of a war veteran. She had seen that look many times not only on those of her world but also on some people of this world. But, it was the way he carried himself that worried her the most. His shoulders were hunched as if he was carrying the entire weight of the world on his shoulders. While she did not expect any pureblood grace, his behavior was more appropriate for those well past hundred who had gotten tired of living and were eagerly waiting for their death. She knew that the muggles downstairs were partly responsible for it. She intended to punish them so harshly that they would curse their parents for bringing them into the world.

He stared at her in shock. In a way, he was relieved that she did not pity her although he was surprised at her ability to talk about someone's death in an indifferent and uncaring manner.

"Just so you know, you would not be receiving any awards for your counseling skills anytime soon if your present speech was any indication.", he said.

"Merlin Forbid! Who did you think you think I was to smother you with hugs? Molly Weasley?", she drawled to which he responded by rolling his eyes.

"Can I ask another question?", he asked hesitantly.

"You mean, other than the one you already asked.", she replied with a smile.

He shot her a fierce glare which, unfortunately for him, had no effect on her.

"You know a lot of things about me but I don't know anything about you other than the name you go by in the muggle world which may or may not be true.", he said.

He felt her demeanor change from playful and mysterious to stoic and indifferent in a split second. She looked him over as if she was judging his worth. It made him uncomfortable but he never let it show.

"Are you sure you want to know now? The tale I am about to tell you will be difficult to believe and I have no proof to offer you other than an oath on my magic.", she replied.

"Yes, I want to know now. You will see that I tend to be more open minded than majority of the people in spite of the role models I had growing up.", he said looking in the direction of the stairs leading downstairs, "I have long since accepted that normal rules of possibility of events do not apply to me."

She raised her wand and said, "I swear on my magic that everything I speak for the next half an hour will be the truth, so mote it be."

"-so mote it be.", he accepted the oath.

A white light came out of their wand and surrounded them. It lasted for a moment before it faded out.

"I will speak only the truth but if I cannot tell you something, I will just refuse to tell you. Now, what do you know about alternate realities?", she said.

"I think I have heard that term somewhere before. I am not sure.", he replied.

"I am sure you did. I won't go into a long theoretical discussion since you don't seem to be the type to enjoy those. That term is based on the theory that there are many universes or realities running parallel to each other with a few differences to distinguish them. For example, in this reality, you are the boy who lived while in another one, you would only be the brother of the boy who lived while in another one, you would actually be a girl and would be the girl who lived. In simple words, I am from a different reality.", she said.

Harry's first feeling was disbelief which turned to astonishment on remembering her oath. He now knew that she at least believed her words to be true.

"Are you saying that there are realities in which Siri-I mean people who are dead here are alive?", he asked excitement tingeing his voice.

She ignored his slip up and replied, "Theoretically, you are correct. As I have not seen them, I cannot be sure. If you are planning on going to another reality where Sirius is alive, forget your plans. My home dimension is more advanced than yours as far as I have seen and we have only just managed inter dimensional travel. It would take many years if not decades for your people to achieve it."

He winced slightly at her reference to his slip up.

"Think of it this way. If I toss a coin, I get heads. At the same time, another me as gotten tails. That could cause the universe to split, imagine someone from your life who's taken a different path from the one you remember them taking. There could be any reason for this happening. You could board one of those muggle aero planes and be killed. If you had missed it, you would have survived, splitting the universe again. Now in both those universes, there is another person who is waiting to board another aero plane and the same scenarios repeat themselves, creating an endless number of parallel universes or dimensions. Are you following me?"

Harry, although a little taken aback by the explanation, nodded.

Bellatrix continued, "So you can very well imagine that it is entirely possible that due to the sheer number of choices in our life, we have an uncountable number of parallel universes, running side by side but never meeting, except for the occasional oddity like you. The dimension we live in may very well be the result of someone choosing a different path, and then another person in the new dimension choosing a different path, another in the newer dimension choosing the same path and so on. Our realities started diverging from the point of the infamous duel between Albus Dumbledore and Gellert Grindelwald. In our dimension, Grindelwald killed Dumbledore but he was severely injured. No one had heard anything about him for years afterwards. He took some time off to recuperate and then returned. He was not interested in conquering the world any longer. This time, it was about revenge. He wanted to destroy England. Before long, another war broke out. Dumbledore's death created a vacuum which was later filled by a charismatic young man named Tom Riddle."

"Tom Riddle as in Lord Voldemort?", he asked in surprise.

"Yeah. I sometimes forget that Tom Riddle is the dark lord here.", she sighs before continuing, "The second war was as much a race to advance in every field to get an edge over the other side as actual fighting. Many new spells and potions have been created as a result of it which I believe your people would not know. We were quite disadvantaged in the case of muggle techniques and weaponry. So, it was a good thing Tom became our leader. Being a half-blood, he was well versed in muggle ways. I was born during that period when ignorance of anything was a risk we could not afford. So, I am more accustomed to the muggle ways than purebloods you are familiar with."

"So, what is your real name?", he asked.

"I was born as Bellatrix Black on 23 December 1953. I am still Bellatrix Black as I have not married yet. I started Hogwarts in the year 1965. Tom Riddle was already the headmaster then. My father had once told me that Hogwarts of my time was more of a boot camp than a school. I can't comment on it much as I had never known any better. We couldn't complain as the rigorous training was the sole reason many of us were still alive. I took over my father's business after my parent's death in my fourth year. Two years later, I became the acting head of the family after Orion Black died."

"Acting?"

"Yes, acting. You have to understand that pureblood society is a male dominated society unlike many others like the Veela society. Men always get preference over women. It is a man's job to earn livelihood while women sit at home. A woman can become the head only in the absence of any eligible males. Now, it is time for you to start talking."

He seemed hesitant initially but started with the story of his first year. She listened patiently asking questions whenever something was not clear, giving appropriate reactions whenever necessary all the while noting the details hidden in the words spoken and unspoken.

"So, let me summarize your first year. You started receiving letters few days before your eleventh birthday which you could not read due to the muggles' interference. Then, the games keeper Hagrid personally came to give your letter and told you about our world. He then dragged you to Leaky Cauldron to get you your supplies and also got a job done for Dumbledore. You began the school year befriending youngest male Weasley and antagonizing the scion of House Malfoy. During Halloween, you saved a muggleborn girl from a troll that should not have managed to enter the castle and gained yourself another friend. You then got selected as the seeker for the house team in spite of being a first year. During your first match, someone tried to murder you by jinxing your broom but you miraculously survived and won the match for the team. Later in the year, you were sent into the Forbidden Forest for your detention and encountered a being which you later learned was Voldemort. You then found out through various clues that the philosopher's stone was hidden in the school and someone was trying to steal it the moment Dumbledore left the school. You told the Deputy Headmistress straight away who refuted your claims in spite of the fact she was surprised you knew about the Stone. So, you chose to take matters into your own hands. You overcame many obstacles with the help of your best friends and went alone in the end to stop the thief only to find out that it was the stuttering Defense professor possessed by Voldemort rather than Snape. You rejected his offer and killed him by burning his throat with your hands. You had a chat with Dumbledore in the Hospital Wing at the end of the year. Have I missed anything?", she asked.

He shook his head. He had decided not to tell her about his little encounter with the Mirror of Erised during Christmas as he felt it was not that important.

She was intrigued by what she had heard. It cleared many doubts but raised more questions. She never understood why Hagrid was the one chosen to introduce Harry to their world when it was usually the teachers' job. Did they really think that the _muggles_ told him everything? She sighed. There were so many inconsistencies in the story. She could not understand why four first years were sent to the Forbidden Forest to catch someone powerful and ruthless enough to slaughter unicorns. Another worrying matter was McGonagall not believing their claims. Then again, it was quite possible that she said what she did to drive them back to their dorms and then reported their warning to Dumbledore. Anyway, she was certain of one thing. The stone, whether it was the real Philosopher's Stone or not, was kept in the school as the bait. The real question was for _whom_.

"Umm … Tara", a hesitant voice interrupted her musings.

"Did you know that by not shaking Malfoy's hands, you essentially declared that you are superior to him and that he was not worthy enough to offer you a hand shake?", she asked.

"What? No, I didn't.", he replied shocked.

She sighed and he detected a note of exasperation and amusement in her voice.

"I am quite surprised that you have not already made an enemy out of the entire wizarding world with your complete lack of social etiquette and the ignorance of our customs. Don't worry. We have enough time to give you a proper education before your school reopens, the education you would have gotten before you went to school if you had had a competent guardian.", she replied her voice changing into a scathing tone at the end.

"But, I thought…"

"… that we were friends?", she asked a sneer marring her beautiful features, "I know that even you are not that naïve. We just formed a shaky alliance against our common enemy Voldemort. As I am your guardian, he needed me on his side. While I respected him for his achievements, I disagree with him on many things."

"I was about to say allies.", he stated in a disgruntled tone, "Anyway about Malfoy…"

"Don't get me wrong. You did the right thing by not taking his hand even if you didn't know why. When two individuals of differing social status meet, it is up to the one with higher social status to decide whether the other is deserving of his friendship or alliance. If the one with lower status offers you his hand of friendship, it is usually considered as an insult to you by that person. Morgana knows people have started honor duels over much less. As you both were of the same age and had similar amount of achievements or lack of, your social status was measured by that of your family. As the scion of _Ancient _House of Potter, you are superior to Draco who is just the Scion of _Lesser _House of Malfoy. But, Lucius Malfoy would have been considered higher in status as he was the _Head_ of the Lesser House of Malfoy and had held positions in many influential bodies.", she replied.

"Are the titles that important? I have never heard anyone mention them before.", he asked.

"It can earn you respect in some circles and give you many privileges. But, as I said, it is not all important. I will explain it to you at a later time as I need to check out many things. There could be many differences I am not aware of."

"I would love to see Malfoy's face when I remind him of that fact. Do you think Malfoy was insulting me then?"

"It is a possibility but I personally think otherwise. From what you have told me subtlety was beyond him. I am sure he would have been taught the proper way. Then again, when have children ever listened to their elders?"

Harry flushed on being reminded of the many times he had deliberately disobeyed the elders.

"I have always listened to the elders. I just chose not to follow through it.", he said.

"Cheeky bugger. Anyway continue on to the second year.", she replied.

She listened attentively when he started speaking. His second year, it seemed, was more fascinating than the year before. It apparently started with a rogue house elf taking extreme measures to keep Harry 'safe'. When stealing his letters did not work, it used Hover charm to dump a cake on the guest. Not only did it piss off the Dursleys but he got a warning from Improper Use of Magic office due to which the muggles learned that he could not use magic outside school causing him to lose his only bargaining chip. He was locked up in this tiny room and metal bars had been put to prevent him from escaping via window or contacting other magical people. In spite of their efforts, he was rescued in a magically altered car. In a similar way, he and his best friend missed the train as the entrance to the platform had been tampered with and they, being the idiots that they were, decided to fly the car to the school on their own. Other than their lack of a functioning brain, she could not think of a reason they would believe that anyone could just fly into the school at any time. They were naturally caught and punished. After returning from the ghosts' party during the Halloween feast, they stumbled upon the petrified form of the caretaker's cat and a message written on the wall that the Chamber of Secrets had been opened. It was initially passed off as a thoughtless prank but the petrification of a student and a ghost made the threat clear. He had been hearing voices that no one else could from the beginning of the year but he only understood its meaning when he accidentally displayed his parseltongue abilities to public in an exhibition duel.

She was shocked to learn that he was a parseltongue. She was not sure how he became one but she did have many ideas. She reminded herself to have an Inheritance test done for him later.

Afterwards, every petrification was blamed on him until his best friend became the victim. Meanwhile, he got his hands on a diary which clued him into Hagrid's involvement in the whole thing. When they got to the half-giant, they saw him being arrested and Dumbledore being suspended. Hagrid managed to tell them to 'follow the spiders'. She wondered for a moment who was the bigger idiot: Hagrid for pushing them into more danger or the children for blindly trusting him and running off into the middle of the Acromantula lair without any back up plan expecting the creatures to be kind and helpful. Not only did they not learn anything useful but they also nearly ended up as a meal. It took until the end of the year for them to learn the location and they took Gilderoy Lockhart, of all people, to fight the basilisk. The blond idiot soon got the better of them and tried to remove their memory but ended up doing that to himself leaving Harry to do the job alone. He then met 16 year old Riddle who unleashed the basilisk on him. Dumbledore's phoenix then helped him out by giving him the Sorting Hat and then pecking the snake's eyes out. He then pulled the Gryffindor's Sword out of the Hat and plunged it through its open mouth getting hand punctured with one of its fangs in the process. He then stabbed the diary with it destroying Tom Riddle thus saving the girl he had been possessing all year. The phoenix healed the wound with his tears and transported them directly to the newly reinstated head master.

She sighed in relief once the story was over. The second year seemed to be fraught with more dangers than the first. She wondered briefly whether the dangers increased with increasing age before she dismissed the notion. After all, what can be more dangerous than fighting a basilisk in its home? She had a feeling that she would get the answer soon enough and she would not like it. She would have found it amusing had it happened to anyone else. As it was her charge that had been in danger, she was not a happy woman.

Harry nervously shuffled on his bed. He could feel her gaze on him. She had a calculating look on her face. She was looking at him as if she had suddenly seen something different in him and was deducing the alterations she would have to make to the plan. He decided that he did not want to know about any of her plans. After all, ignorance was bliss. As far as he understood, he would be her charge until something contradicting it was uncovered in Sirius' will. He might as well make the best use of it.

"Can I see the wound?", she asked.

He never said anything but he pulled back his sleeve and showed her bite mark. She stroked it with her thumb reveling in the feeling of roughness. She released his hand giving him a nod of respect and approval. She lowered the neck of her dress slightly and undid the glamour hiding the scar there.

"I got this when I fought a werewolf. I know it is not as impressive as your basilisk wound but I am proud of it because it is the proof of my victory. A scar is a symbol of one's strength. My advice for you is to take pride in yours. I don't know whether you know but most of the men prefer traditional women who sit at home and play hostess while most of the women prefer strong men who have great survival skills. You have to admit that you have got the better end of the deal."

She saw a smile appear on his face at her words, a smile he was trying to hold back. She detected a flicker of amusement in his green orbs.

"Tell me, Potter, what have I told you that amused you in such a way?", she asked raising a delicate eyebrow.

"Well", he stretched the word, "I was just wondering whether you consider 'Mad Eye' Moody as the most attractive person in the world."

"Moody is not exactly a person, is he? He is the result of the assembly of different body parts made of different materials and subsequent animation.", she replied in a matter-of-fact tone.

She could not keep down the smile that appeared on her face. She knew that if he was already comfortable enough to tease and joke around with her, then he had approved of her and accepted her.

"Have you ever thought of selling its body parts? After all, basilisks are quite rare and its body parts are highly in demand. I have heard that there is one basilisk in a reserve in Eastern Europe and a few in reserves in India but as far as I know the biggest among them is less than 20 feet long. So, if the basilisk you faced was as big as you claimed, it would be the biggest in the recorded history. Even if you weren't already rich, it would have been a fortune on its own.", she said.

"How can I sell it? Wouldn't it be school property?", he asked.

"No, Harry. The Laws of Conquest according to the Code of the Order of Witches and Wizards, set down by the wizard Merlin and the Witch Morgan Le Fay, states that any creature killed by a witch or wizard is then considered the property of the said witch or wizard. The law is much older than Ministry of Magic and it invalidates any other law that contradicts it. So, as you killed it, what to do with it is up to you."

"I never really thought about it to be honest. I never went back to the Chamber after that but if anyone had told me all this I would have sold it.", he replied.

"Of course. It is a pity that no one told you anything considering that you don't have a brain to think on your own.", she continued when she saw that he was about to give what would surely have been a scathing reply, "It doesn't matter. When I get time, I will accompany you to the chamber. The basilisk hide is as tough and magic resistant as dragon hide. So, an armor made from it would be very useful as we are in a war. The eyes are the most expensive part due to its rarity. There is not much known about it. Basilisk venom is 100 times more potent than occamy venom which in itself is highly potent magical venom. It is also extremely corrosive to the point that it causes magically irreversible damage. If you have learned anything in your Potions class, you would know that occamy venom is an important ingredient in Veritaserum. That is the reason it is lethal above a certain limit and is restricted by the Ministry. As they have similar properties, a sufficiently diluted solution of basilisk venom can be used in place of occamy venom to give a higher quality Veritaserum at lower cost.", she said.

"Then, it is a good thing the Ministry did not know about the basilisk. If they had, Fudge would have come marching into the school to confisticate it and would have framed Dumbledore and me for 'endangering the students' by keeping a basilisk in school and for illegal possession of XXXXX classified creature without Ministry permit.", he said.

"After the mess he made for a simple Under Age magic issue, you have a right to be cautious. I find it quite interesting that your Tom Riddle, for all his posturing, did not know much about basilisks.", she said her tone indicating amusement and a little disappointment.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, he did use the girl to kill all the roosters in the school. So, he had to have believed the misconception that rooster's cry was fatal to basilisks."

"It is not?"

She gave a sigh and said, "Tell me, Harry, do you know how a basilisk is created?"

"Yes. By having a toad incubating a rooster's egg. I know that there are some complex steps and stringent conditions involved. Otherwise there would be a lot of them."

"Correct. The truth is that only the rooster which helped in the creation of the basilisk can kill it though the smell of a rooster can scare it. After all, it has no way of knowing who its 'mother' is as there had not been any opportunity for them to bond."

"At least one good thing happened out of all that. Lucius Malfoy was fired from the Board of Governors.", he said.

He saw her looking at him as if he had just said that Hogwarts was in Germany. He raised an eyebrow.

"Harry, the positions in the Board of Governors are hereditary. You can't just fire someone from it. The only situations someone can lose their position is conviction, death and grave illness. In those cases, the next of kin takes over. I am appalled that you do not know this considering that you would be occupying a seat in the Board in a few years. I am quite disappointed in the adults in your life. I think you meant to say that Lucius was relieved of his chairmanship duties and was replaced by someone else."

She saw that he was shocked. She sighed. _Hadn't anyone told the boy anything about his family? Just when she thought she had seen it all, the boy's ignorance continues to surprise her._

"Who are the members? Is there any chance that I know of them?", he asked awkwardly.

"Fine. I'll tell you about it. From the time after the founders to mid-sixteenth century, the headmaster had complete control of Hogwarts and all the matters related to it. Then, in 1560, it became public knowledge that the headmaster had gambled away the land that belonged to Hogwarts and the school was in danger of being taken over. So, rich and influential houses pooled their resources and bought back the land at nearly twice the initial cost in return for fulfilling their demand. The demand was to create an independent organization called the 'Board of Governors' with these families as members with the power to take to the headmaster to task if he was not doing his job properly. Understandably, the first action the board took was to fire the headmaster responsible for the mess. Over the years, many families went extinct and many others were absorbed by newer families. As of now, the Board consists of 12 seats: 3 descendants for each founder. For Gryffindor it is Potter, Longbottom and McGonagall; for Slytherin it is Black, Malfoy and Nott; for Hufflepuff it is Bones, Smith and Macmillan and for Ravenclaw it is Boot, Brocklehurst and Ravenswood."

"So, I am one of the three closest descendants of Gryffindor?", he asked uncertainly.

"Yes. There are rumors that Potters are direct descendants. Considering that Godric Gryffindor had 5 children, it is quite plausible. I don't want to get your hopes up but there is a possibility that you are Gryffindor's heir. Do you know the tale of King Arthur and his sword Excalibur?", she asked to which he nodded in reply.

"If there is anyone among the Founders who can be fond of Arthur and Merlin, it is Godric Gryffindor. Especially considering the number of children he had, it is possible that he replicated a similar method to find his heir. Even you have to admit that your pulling the Gryffindor Sword out of the Hat was quite similar to Arthur pulling out the Excalibur from the rock. It is too much of a coincidence."

Harry thought it through for a moment and had to admit that she was right. He knew that no one else had pulled it out for a long time as it was believed to have been lost until he pulled it out. It is even possible that he had been the first person to touch the sword after Gryffindor. He wondered why none of them had made the connection till now. It was then that he noticed her giving him a weird look. It was as if she was assessing him somehow.

"Harry, I have heard that the parselmouths are naturally good kissers. Is it true?", she asked giving him a demure look with her heavy lidded eyes.

She noticed with some amusement that red spots started appearing on his cheeks.

"I don't know. I have only kissed one girl and she ended up crying afterwards.", he replied apparently embarrassed at his lack of experience.

She slowly leaned towards him until their noses were almost touching. They were so close that he could feel her breath on his lips.

"Why don't we test it?", she asked in a sultry tone licking her ruby red lips seductively.

She saw his eyes widen in shock and saw him gulp. His eyes drift to her lips and back to her eyes. He opened his mouth to speak but nothing came out. She leaned back with a smug smirk on her face.

"I was just teasing you. It is good to see that I have that effect on males even when they are _little_ kids.", she replied mirth showing in her eyes.

He glared at her but it did not look intimidating due to his flushed cheeks.

"I am not a _little_ kid. I will come of age in an year.", he replied.

"Alright! Whatever lets you sleep at night! Give me your wand for a moment.", she said.

"Why?", he asked startled.

"I am asking about the one you use as your magical focus obviously. I am going to remove the Ministry tracers. Then again, if your other wand is as big, I would enjoy playing with it.", she stated.

In spite of the tone he used, the look she gave his vital area made it clear which 'wand' she was talking about. He felt his face heat up and his blush spread from his cheeks to the tip of his ear. He knew that he resembled a tomato right now. He gritted his teeth when he saw how she was enjoying his humiliation. He shifted slightly and put his wand on the bed next to him. If she had noticed that it was done with more force than necessary, she ignored it. She tapped the wand with hers. The wand glowed blue for a few seconds before a snapping sound was heard. She returned the wand to him. He flicked his wand and found that it felt lighter. It was as if there was something blocking his magic in the wand and he never knew it.

"Tara, do the Ministry charms include magic limiters?", he asked.

"I believe it does. After all, training broomsticks meant for kids have charms that limit the speed and height to ensure their safety. Why wouldn't wands have something similar? Anyway, the wand you bought when you were 11 was the most compatible to the undeveloped magic you possessed then. It might not remain so when your magic completely matures when you reach the age of 21. A person's personality and inclinations change as they grow older. So, you will need to check up again once your magic matures.", her reply came.

She then checked the time and said, "It is time to leave. I have lot of things planned for us today. So, finish packing quickly and meet me outside."

When she left, he noticed that her hips seemed to be swaying more than usual. He savored the sight of her tight ass and her curvaceous body until she was out of sight. He was now sure who would be in his fantasies the next time. _Cho Out Tara In._

He quickly finished packing and checked again to make sure that he had not forgotten anything. He tapped his wand on the trunk making it featherweight. His outburst and running away before his third year had actually turned out to be a good thing. He got the chance to do proper shopping. The first thing he did was to sell his old trunk in the trunk shop and buy a new one. His new trunk looked exactly like his old one but had two extra compartments that were hidden well. It had also been enchanted in such a way that with two taps of his wand he could lighten it, shrink it, return it to normal, open and close it and access compartments at his will. He had initially been wary of using magic but the clerk at the shop assured him that the amount of magic he would use to activate the enchantments is too small for Ministry detectors to pick up on. The next thing he bought was the clothes. It was then that Harry learned the hard way how difficult it was to get good quality muggle clothes. Madam Malkin's shop had some of good quality but the variety was low. Twilfitt and Tattling's, unlike Madam Malkin's, served only upper class customers like Malfoys. So, they never kept anything _muggle _in their shop. There was another shop called Barney's Muggle Wonders which sold all the Muggle items. While there were many items that had impressed him, clothes were not among them. The clothes they had were so bright and colorful that they made Dumbledore's dress code look normal. He ended up buying a whole new wardrobe from Madam Malkin's and a few robes for special occasions from Twilfitt and Tattling's. It was a good thing that the assistants were quite helpful as his inexperience would have made the job harder.

He picked up his trunk and went downstairs. He kept the empty cage in the last compartment of his trunk as felt that the necessity of hiding its true nature was not worth the inconvenience of carrying it around where every muggle in the street can gawk at it. Just when he had his hands on the knob about to turn-

"Wait!"

He turned around to see Dudley waddling towards him dragging his enormous bulk with him. He absently noted that Dudley was lot thinner than he was last year. It looked like all the diet and boxing had finally paid off. He allows his hand to graze his wand as he assesses his threat level. He then noticed that his cousin seemed to be nervous by the way he was shuffling his feet. He raised an eyebrow silently questioning his purpose.

"Are you leaving … I mean like forever?", he asked.

Harry was surprised to hear no eagerness in his cousin's tone. There was something else in his tone that he could not quite make out. He did not understand why as he knew that he was quite eager to leave the place behind.

"I don't know.", he replied, "It depends on the future events. I may or may not return."

He was telling the truth anyway. He knew that the only reason she acceded to Dumbledore's request for him to stay here until that day was that she needed some time to set her plans rolling. He also knew that she did not intend him to return here and she was a woman who got what she wanted at any cost. The tone of his reply made his feelings on the matter very clear.

"I just wanted you to know that, unlike my parents, I don't think of you as a waste of space. From what I understood, you risked your life last year to save someone who did not deserve to be saved.", Dudley said timidly, "I know I don't deserve any forgiveness after everything I have done but I was wondering whether we could still keep in touch even after you leave."

He was shocked this time. Dudley was actually apologizing to him, in his own way. He scrutinized him trying to figure out whether he was lying but he knew that his cousin could not fool anyone whose intelligence was above the Dursley average.

"I understand that with your upbringing you had no choice as to who you grew up to be and I am happy for you to see that you are trying to be a better person. But, if you want forgiveness, you are asking for too much.", he replied blandly.

Dudley sighed, his expressions set in grim understanding as if he had already known he was going to say that.

"So, who is the hot chick that you are leaving with? Is she your girlfriend?", Dudley asked in a tone that displayed his jealousy clearly.

Harry raised an eyebrow in surprise at the sudden change in topic. He suddenly realized why Dudley was so eager to keep in touch with him. While he knew that Dudley was sincere in his apologies, his little crush on Tara seemed to have been a bigger motivator. He was undecided for a moment on what his reply should be. A part of him wanted to say 'yes' just to see how jealous he could get. He could still remember how jealous he had been in his childhood when Dudley had loving parents and friends while he was unloved and unwanted. It would be a good way to crush him and make him understand who the better among them is. Another option he had was to give him some false hope and sent him off to her. While he did not know much about Tara, he knew that cruelty and sadism were the art forms Bellatrix had mastered. It would be amusing to see her crush him like the insignificant pest that he was.

"Her name is Altaira Black. She is not my girlfriend but the one in charge of me now. She is the cousin of Sirius Black, you know, my godfather who was imprisoned for blasting away 12 muggles but escaped later on. Her family has been magical since the end of Roman Empire, if not earlier, and they consider muggles as lower than the dirt beneath their shoes, similar to the way your parents have treated me.", he replied doing his best to keep all the emotion out of his voice.

The look on Dudley's face was priceless. While he knew that his small minded cousin did not have the intelligence to understand how important her family was, he knew that mentioning Dursleys' treatment of him got the message through to him about how hopeless his situation was.

"Bye Duds"

* * *

He waved and left feeling happier than he ever felt in the recent times. He sincerely hoped that he would never have to return here even if he no longer had any restrictions on performing magic. He saw her leaning against a car looking intently at something in the distance. He tried to follow her line of sight but he saw nothing significant.

"Tara, what are you looking at?", he asked.

The only sign of surprise she showed was slight stiffening of her posture before returning to her initial relaxed state. It happened so quickly that he would not have noticed it had he not been looking for it.

"I was just checking out the wards of the place. Blood magic is one of my specialties.", she replied.

"What do you think of it?", he asked.

"Well, the wards are strong on their own but the blood wards put here are nowhere near as powerful as they were meant to be. So, it must have been created by someone who knows some blood magic but is not an expert, I would guess Albus Dumbledore.", she replied.

"You talk as if there are more than the blood wards.", he stated rather than asked.

She turned her head slightly to let him see the beginning of a smile on her face.

"Yes. The blood wards here are of an interesting type. They are as good as nonexistent for muggles but they would only allow the magicals having your blood to pass through unless they have your blood running through their veins or they have the permission of the creator Albus Dumbledore. The former can be discounted as no one of that category is still alive. It is similar for communication. Only letters from those approved by Dumbledore passes through and everything else would be redirected somewhere else.", she said.

He could read the hidden message and understood her implication. She wanted to know exactly how much control Dumbledore had on his life. Barring the end of the year 'chats' and placing him at the Dursleys, the headmaster had not been directly involved in his matters until last year as far as he knew. Last year, Dumbledore used this power to ensure that he was kept isolated and uninformed, though in his defense, Voldemort did have an undue influence on him. While he knew that he did have an explosive temper, he was level headed person most of the time. Keeping his emotions under control was necessary to survive a childhood with Dursley's. But, last year, his emotions were all over the place and he lost his temper for even the smallest of things. He never really understood why he was angry with Dumbledore for ignoring him when he had never been involved in his life. While he was not innocent by any means, blaming him was silly when every authority figure he had ever known had been failures. None of them had ever checked on him when he had to stay in Dursley prison or supported him when his name was slandered by press or other students. It was then he suddenly remembered something.

"Actually, Voldemort has my blood as he took it during his resurrection. Does that mean he would come and go whenever he wants?", he asked unable to hide the panic in his voice.

To his credit, the comment caused her to lose her composure. She turned in his direction completely and was studying him as if she had missed some important detail before.

"When did this happen? Why didn't you tell me this before?", she asked.

"After my 4th year. I will explain everything later.", he replied.

"You better do. As to your question, he cannot cross the wards as long as he has malicious intentions towards you. But, he could cross it if his intention was to kidnap you for your own good. He could always change his mind later on. Well, that would explain the second layer of wards that seemed to be recently built. Apparently, old Dumbles was worried about blood wards being ineffective and had some back up in place.", she replied.

He sighed. With every new bit of information he learned, he was starting to have more questions.

"Listen. I understand that things have happened very quickly and you are quite confused. Why don't we forget it? Lets dedicate this weekend to enjoying life and getting to know each other.", she said.

They both got into the car. Tara turns on the ignition and moves forward. Soon, they left Privet Drive behind. Harry noted that he felt lighter and more care free once they left the wards. It was as if a dementor had been there sucking out all the joy and making him feel miserable. He mentioned this fact to her. She looked at him as if she was wondering whether she should say something.

"Actually, you are more right than you realize. The blood wards in that place are based on the blood bond between you and Petunia. So, your hatred for each other influenced the wards to such an extent that it created such an atmosphere in that had such an effect on everyone in the house.", she replied.

He shook his head clear off his thoughts and decided to leave the matter behind. Now that he had gotten out he had no plan of returning there.

"What are our plans for today?"

She gave him a playful smirk before answering, "Ever been to the West End before?"

"I have passed by whenever Uncle Vernon dropped me off to the station. But, I have never been there. Dursleys don't take me out anywhere if they can get away with it.", he replied.

"Then it is time someone did. We are going to watch Golden Eye, you know, the latest James Bond movie. If it is your first time, you might as well see a good one."

He had heard many muggleborns talk about James Bond. It was supposedly about a superspy who worked for the Crown. They all seemed to love it. To say that he was excited would be an understatement.

"Harry, in which year are electives offered?", she asked.

"In third year, we had the choice between Divination, Care of Magical Creatures, Muggle Studies, Ancient Runes and Arithmancy. In sixth year, we can drop the subjects not necessary for our career choice."

"So, what did you take?", she asked.

"Divination and Care of Magical Creatures."

"I can understand Muggle Studies but why not Ancient Runes and Arithmancy?"

"Well, Ron said that they are very tough. Even Percy recommended these subjects. So, we took them."

She nodded in acknowledgement and said, "Harry, always remember that tough and easy are relative terms. I have managed to get information on the usual curriculum followed in these subjects. For Ancient Runes, third year consists of learning meaning of the symbols of Norse, Celtic, Germanic and some Ancient Egyptian. Fourth year is basically the continuation of third year where you are taught whatever was left. In the middle of fourth year, you will be given scrolls with a message in rune you would have to decode. By the end of the fifth year, you would be able to read books written in any of these languages. While I believe that the Curse Breaker Weasley would be more appropriate, I could easily cover these portions in the one and half months we have ahead of us if you want. Knowledge of runes is essential to create or break wards, to handle cursed artifacts and sometimes even to heal cursed wounds. As for Arithmancy, how good were you at Maths in primary school?"

"Maths was my best subject in my primary school.", he replied.

"Then Arithmancy should be quite easy for you. Other than numerology, everything in third year is what you have learned in primary school. You would also learn why seven is the most magically powerful number; three is magically stable and so on. After that, you learn to break spells into its numerical equivalents and study their properties. It is necessary to create and modify spells.", she said.

He gave a long sigh and said, "If someone had explained everything properly in my third year, I would have made a different choice."

"True. Now, Harry, I want you to press the button with the symbol of bowl inscribed on it.", she said.

He quickly pressed the button. He was surprised that he did not have to press it like normal buttons. A slight touch caused a drawer to open. Inside, he saw an oval shaped mirror fixed vertically which had a ruby colored crystal each fused on the top and bottom.

"You will see that there is a side that is very sharp. Use it to make a cut on your finger."

He hesitated for a moment. There was no sign of joke in her features. After a moment of contemplation, he followed her instructions.

"Now, smear the blood on the mirror.", she said.

He did it and saw a red mist cover the mirror surface. He saw her look at it briefly and turn her attention back to the road in front.

"You can see the red mist clouding the surface. You can now speak to it the name of the place or person you want to spy on and enjoy the result."

He rolled his eyes in annoyance. He did not know what game she was playing but he decided to play along. He leaned in towards the mirror and whispered "Burrow". To his surprise, the mirror surface cleared showing the familiar ramshackle building that he had always considered as his home after Hogwarts.

_ The image faded away to show the image of their dining room. Mr. Weasley sat at the corner seat which was his place as the head of the family. On his left hand side sat the oldest son Bill. The next seat was strangely empty and the next two were occupied by the twins as Charlie was still in Romania. The first seat on the right hand side was empty. The next seats were filled by Hermione, Ron and Ginny respectively. Mrs. Weasley came from kitchen with two dishes and set it down on the table. She sat down to the right of Mr. Weasley. Next with the dishes came … Fleur Delacour. What is she doing here?_

_She sat down next to Bill and they started eating. Ron however was gawking at Fleur so much that he had forgotten to eat, a rarity in itself. It wasn't until Hermione elbowed him hard did he come back to his senses. He noticed that Fleur seemed to be quite unpopular among the females there. He was quite surprised to see the expression of complete loathing on their faces. It was completely opposite to what he was used to seeing that it felt weird. He never understood why they seemed to hate her so much. She was a good friend once she managed to take out the metaphorical wand out of her lovely derrière after the Second Task. He was suddenly brought out of his thoughts when he heard his name mentioned._

_"Dad, when are we going to get Harry away from the Dursleys?", Ron asked between mouthfuls of food._

_"He will be leaving with his new guardian today if he hasn't already left.", Mr. Weasley said._

_Everyone turned to look at him in shock._

_"Guardian? Who is this new guardian? It is not from one of the dark families, is it? Merlin knows who the Ministry will put him with. The poor boy has suffered enough as it is.", Mrs. Weasley said looking at her husband in worry._

_A sigh escaped Mr. Weasley's lips showing how tired and worried he had been lately._

_"Actually, the Ministry doesn't know. Only Albus knows who the new guardian is and he is being quite tightlipped. We can only hope he knows what he is doing.", he replied._

_"See Hermione, …"_

Ron continued speaking but he could not hear any word nor could he see anything. This time, the mirror surface was covered by white cloud. By the time they cleared, it was back to normal. He wiped away the remaining blood and closed the drawer.

"So, did you get the information you were looking for?", Tara asked.

"So, that was real?", he asked to confirm.

"The technique is called Scrying. It has been banned for so long that no one knows that there is more to Divination than tea cup and palm reading. So, it can be used on majority of places and people. After all, we cannot ward against something whose existence we are not aware of. The one important fact of Divination is that future cannot be predicted as it is ever changing. We can only see one or two possibilities. But, everything that is shown about present or past is accurate. How else do you think Rowena Ravenclaw became so knowledgeable?", she sighed and continued, "There used to be a time scrying was used to solve murder cases. Then again, there was a time necromancy was used to solve murder cases too."

"So, the 'car' is not exactly a normal car, is it?", he asked.

"No. This is a newly released model in States which I imported. It is a magical vehicle that is similar in appearance to muggle cars not an enchanted muggle car. There are many interesting features but I am still learning them. In this journey, we are still at the same point. Well, it looks like we have reached our destination.", she replied.

* * *

It has been a long time since I wrote my last chapter. So, I wrote a long story.

I intentionally made Bella's agenda unclear. It gives the character an aura of mystery.

From this chapter onwards, the dimensional traveler is Tara(Altaira) while Bellatrix Lestrange is Bella or Trixie.

Few have commented that my last chapter is quite similar to another story. Only after checking it, I realized that while there were many differences, it was quite similar too. So, I might delete it or edit it later. I apologize for anyone I had offended.

As you have already seen, I have deviated from canon in the previous years. I have made things more realistic and Harry more gray while still keeping him a child. I never understood why he was so quick to forgive the Dursleys in canon when Dudley had just a ridiculous attempt at apology and other did not even believe that they had done anything wrong. While my Harry wouldn't plot their deaths, he would not forgive them ever.

This is not a super Harry. While Harry will grow to be a powerful wizard, he would have to work hard for it, even with rituals.


End file.
